SADHANAS FROM

Adhyatma Rmayanam

Swami Shantansnda

PARVATTUMMA C.P. SUBBARh,W SETTY CHARITABLE TRUST

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Sldhanm from Adhyatma Rrrmymnam n quidreswnce of Sadhanas culled out from Adhyatma Ramayansrn by Sri Swam1Shantadanda

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iii

SAMARPAN

- Swami Shantananda

Preface

T chis k k , an effcm has k c n made to emphasise the n spiritud Truths and specific Sndhanas its given in Adhyatmzr Kamrrynnam, As it is g t ~ t o d wding the entin: Ramapna that itself will purify the mind and t~lrirnatelyIead one to Moksha, the entirc stwy has also lo hc slrmmarised as a main

Sudhum in itwlt',

vli

viii

In u High Schaal, a visiting in~pscrnrnr schnols suddcnly cntercd into ti clnss irnrl irnntl !hat Rarnnymn wm being taught in that period. Hc mked nm nf the h y 4 i "Who hmke the h of Lord Siw?" The boy got up i n dl agitation w nnd wiih his lips trembling anSwerrrd "Sir, I assure you Sir, I never went near that h w and X did not break i r Sir, please bcliwe me." 'The Tnspec~mgat amused 3 this unexpec!ed reply a turning ~rowardsihe 1 d teacher s k c d him - "Whd is all thisT' The tmchm also vely mr;peetfully q l i d "Respected Sir. nowwhys all thesc boys

A very thoughtful and unique cover has k e n &signed by the Tnternationally reputed artist Ms.Awns Caur. May the Tkine Motha Bless her with good health and ptspuity.

xl

Contents
Prefmc
'Part-T

Part-TI

Fsrt-ILI
Pnrt-TV

Putt-V

Part-VT
Part- WI
PRACTICAL I.UNTS FOR SFUUTUAL SADKANA 14 1

SADHANAS FROM

ADHYATMA RAMAYANAM
Part -I
Adhvatma Rsrnztynnam was authored by Vyasa, I lit cnrnpnser of Mahttbharaaa whiTe the first I ~ i ~ r n a y n n (Adi Kaavyam) was cornposcd by n Walmiki Rsli "dhyutrna' means that which rclatcs I t ) rhc Lord, thc indwcllcr in nur hems, Adhyalma It:~nrny:mamrncans thc smry cf the Suprcrnc Lord, r w h o jncarnalcd (avatar] as Rsrna, Ihc Sati I : i This bouk stresses on thc spiritual 11*4pt~c1s c how Rama was but the Supreme 3s l!~.;tlitv and zhe ways 10 liberation [God-rcalisation) r hc,r~t?h knowledge [Jnana) supported by Bhakti
3 1 r l v r b rind devotion] and Karma.

of spiritual I I i n this bonk arc 11 1 RAMA I lift IlJAYAM and ( 2 ) RAMA GITA and thc entire 11 tlau hrm csf convcrsatim bctwecn Lord
'I'hr iwo most psorninen~episodes
ti141

SWA and PARVATT, The two nforcsnid cpimdcs

cnn be considcrcd as constituting thc esscncc of aJI

Upanishads.

R M HRUDAYAM 4
The verv first Chapter of this Ramayanam srarts
4

with ' R a m Hmdayam', which deals with ihe real

form Iswarmpa) of Sri Rarna.

Once hrvati asked 'lord Sin - "Some consider Sri Rarna as i h e nlrirnate ~ e a l i t y l ,the Supreme LmQbereft of Maya, IC he was Lhe Supreme Lord, haw could it be thal he wept like a common m at the separation fiom Sita, his consort? 1f hc h thc lutowlcdgc (thc Supreme Knnwlcdgc), why h Vasishrha to instruct him (in YOC VASZSHTHA]? Ii' he was nn ordinary ignoranl m why should people wcmhip him? Please also t me the eternal Tmth relating te the Supreme L a and explain what is knowledge, experient 'knrrwledgc [Vijnann), Vairagya [dispassion] a
Rhnkii ~dcvoticm]".

Lord S ~ M cclngraudatcd Parvati on her deep I3hakti I h v e ) which alone could induce irt her 1his yearning rn knnw rhe secrel or Rama-tnttwa [ ~ h c reality behind Rama). 4 started describing thc naturc of thc Paramatman (thc Supreme Soul), I-lc explained ir dl by narrating a clsnversation bclwcc~lRarna, Sila and Hanuman. soon aiiler Ramn's coronarim after rcrurning from Lmka. Both Rarna and Sita, by turn, explained thc highest spiritual !ruth lo Manuman who was considered as
thr- fitkcst to receive ihe Jnam bmausc d' his purity and intense devutiun. This was called
d

' b m a Hrudayam'. Hearing Qr reading this Rarna Hrudavam is itsclf a great Sndliana tcading t o + i b Whcre ~tlw bondage I s real, a solid spiri1wl pcaclice (Sadlhana) is essential. Whme ~ h c bandage is only a delusion or imagination, hearing about the Truth rcpcatcdly till it s w p s inlo h e marrows ol' our bmes and results in unshakable inner conviction [not merely intellectuall , will resu It in Moksha.

ajnanal bcynnd certain Tirnils (for instancc ears c a n m t hcnr vcry low noises or very Toud noises) and thc vast irnmens31~ the 'GOO', It is a nalural - af rrssult of our i i callcd ignorance and thc Infinite natwrc of' the Lord. [L is just likc childrcn calling h c t ~ hcyonrl comprchcnsim as ''Magic', blst

magic is nut sctme~hing concrck which exists as an 'entity'. It is the Lord Himselr who is ihe 'subject' who is able to pmjecl i-rirnself as all the 'objects' of thc world includtne lhe Jivas. Sn ihe uwrld is n d i f k x n l born [he Superne Being and the l a t m a 13irnself is in 811 the ~b-jecls, When an i m a ~ ci s sclen in the mirrm, rhc image i s no1 solid but n clelz~sinn. Furthcr, blh inside and oulside 1hc abjccl, crrily r h glass is rhere including ~ h c ~ plncc whcrc the irnn~c is sccn. Similarly Ihc world bring cldusnry, ihcrc is nuzhing d l c d inside or oulsidc and thcrc i s I thc Suprcmc Being. Due Irk tltc limilalim or our senses we are unablc to scc thc Suprcmc Lord who forms alt the objmts [al'tcr all, -eves cannol scc 2hc u@iec~s which are ex~rerntlv closest and nathing can be closcr than the God]. A s thc Supreme Lnrd i s Ihe cc~nstitutionali n p d i c n l of all thc crenrions (material cause like i h c clay making up a plat), f-lc is called the Self I.4trna) of
b

dl beings. Just like a metallic platc kepl in ihe Sun gets heated up [i.e+ renectcd heal), our individual isltcllcct {Buddhi]' gets some reflecfcd mnsciuusnrrss frnm the Supreme Lard and imagines itself in ;~sstxiation with the body as :In individun1 self called Jiva with n scparntc narnc nncl form, T h i s is - a n imagined individual cn~ilywhich we are IIOL Wc arc m i individuals but nn inicgral pair nf r he Toraliiy or !he Suplrcrnc k i n g . This is jusl likc :I zero wall bulb l i ~ r g t t ~ i n g nncnms with ~ h c ils Told clcaricity in lhc Gcncrmr and d l athcr bulbs ;~nd csnsidcring itsrll as FI 1irnibx.l individual (lhcrc is, a k r nll nnc ckctriuity ndy which flrnvs ;:through ;ill thc bulbs OF various putcncic.s-s).It' a beggar sew IrirnwN in 3 drcr~mas n king siltirrg cm ;I throne : I I ~ talking tn same twrrnw courtjcrs, all i k s e ~ ~ c u p in thc dream arc the imagination d'his lc n ~ i n dand it is ihc dreamer who becamc ihc king and a111 his crsu-rtiers. I n o ~ h e t words, all thcsc people are n o dii'iereni from the dreamer. The rndividual souls li,e. e p ) arc not di1'f;crenlfrom rhc Supreme L o d . There is anlv m e Ttl;:ality and ihe . mlivirlual 3s myth. Thc Duddhi (intellect] hiis created this myth. The rgo i.e. the irrdividuali!y

exists duc to our ignorance af the Truth IaiJnnna),

which has csvcred our mind. While i h c Sclf alone exists3 in its prisiinc purity of knowlcdgc without any trace of igmarancc, wc who mistakenly consider the bodv-mind complex as our SclI' [limited) . . consider ourselves as ignorant, thus superimposing our ignorance on the Sell which is all-knowledge. W e thus revel in the mire of sansara and being altachcd to the various ob-jects of the dream world like son, wife etc., engage ourselves in nurncrnus activilies. All ac~iviliestake place in thc Talafity just as the light we get from a bulb is From thc total electricity generaled from thc generator and the individual bulb i s only B mcdium OC its exprmsian. Each person, identifying hirnsclr with ~ h c + body mind carnpl~xibulbs) considers himself as the doer [kartn) of all activities. Consequcnlly as a result of good and bad actinns he earns merit or sin Ipunya or papa) entitling him 10 prosperity or sufferidg [reward or punishment) as a h to heaven or hell. To exhaust ihe punya or papa hy experi-encing its entitlements itrhoha) he has to bc born again and thc cyclc is repeated. Simul?ancous wieh uthur

ncithcr a karta nnr a hhnktn and should n e w ascribe la himself the doership. Thcn the activities will not bind him by forging the chnin a rcpeatcd f

I.rirths+

T summarise, the Paramatman or the Supreme o S d i is like Total Elcciricity gcncratcd. 11 i s the t)arstmatman who manifizils Himself' in all various kings, like the elec~ticiryin individual bulbs and
r his ekctticity in the hulbs i s called Alrnan or the SclF, Thus in effect, the cIectricity in I I is iricnticnl with the Tntdity af ihc Eleclfic Pnwer pmcratcd nnd bcyond also with thc clcc~riuity in dl the bulbs. On i h a ~ nnalogv, the Sell' or Aiman
d

i s irlcnticnl with 2 c Paramalmm but l h h Pacl is h

covcrcd bv ignarartcc (avidya er maya). The Buddhi [inteltect] which i s UII imagined link makes a person think that his twdy-mind complex is his real Sell: This imagined entit): is called Ego or h a , This ego F.liva], which is an imagination in the Ruddhi i s the dacr of nctivilics, the expcriencer of mcrit and sin [the h i ! or activities) and is the ans who trslnsrnigrrrtcs to hell nr hcaven and i s subjecl 10 hirth and death.
A

I'r~rgattenas t h e mind i s

'I'hc knowlcdgc of tlic idcnlit'icaticm of thc Aimm

and Paramatman alone will release one from the irnagi-nary bandage. This is explained in thc Ramayanam by an illustration of the various divisians af thc one unbividcd Space [Akasn). A space i s something in which all the objccts d thc world arc capable 01' being cmttiined. This idinilc spacc crctmding dl ovcr the univcrsc is known as ~hc Inrinitc Spacc [Mallaknsa). Whcn there i a s pond with water, it occupies a space calk6 ~ h c pond-space (Mathaknsa). On thc water of the spacc is rcflccled sky above with the sun, mom, stars etc. seeming to occupy a spacc sopcrimposed un t h e water and this is c a k d Imagespace [Pra~ibirnba Akasa). There is anlv one individual Infinite space and alI these divisions are imaginary.

Our inlcllcct i s likc h c pond whcrc an imagu uf thc skv 1';611s [rcflcctcd cnnsciousncss) and rhe irssagc-spacc is callcd the liva or Jivatman [a limited and imaginary m i . This is also called lhe Ep, Thc buddhi, Jiva and ego ate all identical. This reflec~cdconsciousrress (ego) is unreal and perceived because of the inability [ i p o t m c e ) of ihe intellect tn understand ~ h Supreme Self. Thc s Supreme Brahman i s indivisible and free from limitatims. The division into the Jivas is only due

~hc delusion of the mind. The wrinus hndi~s of lvinfis [including the intcllcci] which arc like lhc h l h s in which the clcclricity glows and !he enrire world (01' wluch the bodies l'orm it part) arc unrcal trlrcnm crcaliuns or imagination) and they nrc: culled the non-self (analma), Thc ' T ~ - ~ h n tis r h ~ I trnencss or the identical nature of the Aman with E'ararnatrnan is revealed to us only chrcwgE.1 the t!rr;lt dicta [Mahavakyas] of the Vcdas [ S C I ~ ~ ~ U R S ) t i "TATTWAMAST- That Thou An." L'AHAM DRAMASMI" - I am that Supreme king'." ctc. The 11ifirncd the rcol knowledge dawns nn us" through tlic Mnhavakyas, 811 thc ignnrancc (avidya] bcciwse ~ 1 which we arc unable to rcalisc thc n a l m 01' thc ' St~prcmcLord. along wirh its c l k c l z (LC. hcing c*trhdicd and getting inwIvcd in un imaginary wnrld) i destroyed- To considcr ihc liinitcd J i w 2s s a doer and expertmces ard not realizing its identity with the ~ r a h j m a n(the Totality] is called delusion. i s delns ion is deslroyecl. Anv sincere devorcx who loves God intensely attains this knuwledgc of ruicncsR and becomes unc with h S . d , Those
1r1
d

who are devoid5 u Bhskti [lwe and devntbn) will f

and drrrwncd in thc pits of Scriplurcs. They will not be able to gel liberalinn cven nftcr
be deluded

hundreds of births.

Rama is only amthcr name" for Paramatman who alone ~Xists,is aIl rr~nsciousnessand is called Satchidanada. A1I sufferings stem from duality. Whcn Brahman done exists, il is all B i s s (Ananda). I a dream, when a person s e a several objects like n various people, houses etc. those &iecls arc an unreal and arc the mcntal projections o the dreamer f who alone exists. In the same way, all ihe ob.jects of the world are unreal a n d a r e rhc rncntal prqjectims of the Suprcrne Lmd who has becnmc all the illusory ait>jects. He i s not suqect lo any changes and &mply exists in 1-16s Bwanncw just as the electricity in the bulb remains wirhoul any change while thc bulb f i x . , the hndv) is subjcn * death [breakage or getting fuscd). 1 is tllc Sell: 1 which pctvarlcs a 1 the zhrcc slalrrs fif' a pcrsun 1 viz.. the wnking, ~hc: dream and thc sleeping slaw. Wc do not recognize I-Tim in rhu weking slate as

cga is super-irnpascd nn 1-Tim. In [he d~u3rnwc ;WE C U ~ S C ~ O Uof sornclmdy sccing the drcnm ns rr S witness and the cgn i cnaczing with a name and s form in thc dream drama. Thai wi~ncsqi s ttic Scll', It1 [hc slucping s h t c wc a m not rnnscjuus nlt' lhc wrrrld or our badiug but wc arc dl able to recall itw pleasan1 sleep in rhc mwnjng. This tncslus i h l when we were sleeping. there. was ; watcher on ihe 1 rower who wiinessed the sleep add in rhc morning ~ablcd us recollect the experience. Me is the SrW or the Atman. d
Ilie

Thc dclusivc p o w c r , which ctcatrsd l h c imagimtion of a wnrld with ils ahjwts, called Maya

Prakrili (primrwdial naluru). Sila 1% I hat Prakrihi rcsponsiblc for crcnkm, suslensincts :~ndd k s o l u l i ~ ~ C ~ Cworld, She i s aclivalcd by of' ;mrl does all the activilies in the presence 01' t h c Paramatman [Supreme ScKl who i s Kama. Thr: Pi~rmarman dow nothing bul Pnkriti acrs only in F-lis presence. But pwpTe, in their ignrmnce. illlrihute all thc activities t thc Supmrne L w d , Rilrna. Rama, ihc Suprcrnc L o r i s frce From ;~~lnchrncnts and i s a ntm-dncr. All t h a d s and ~ Euclas done by Ranrx like the i m x l i i n ~ .of the ~ W ill' I m r l Sivn, grling 10 ~ h c Riltt~laki~ fi~rcst, al.wny his
is also k n o w as

kidnapping by Rnvana, kitling or Vdi and all ihc demons including Rovana ctc.: were d l ihc pmjec'tiona af ihe M a p manacuvercd bv Siln tllr Parkriti. Thc ignclranl pcoplc: nrrributcd lhcrn 811 to Rama who i s the Suprcmc Self, nctianlcss and changeless. "Rnma at no tirnc m a single movcmtsnt, Hc never walks, stands up, rcgsels, cxpects, abundans or docs anything, Jle i all bliss, s unmoving and irnrnuhble. 11 appears nr if He has takcn up the qunlitics: of Maya an 1%rn~eII.'*~
at Sita's

This i s ihc Rnma Hrurlnyam, which is dccmed as fit tn be kept ns ihc mas1 secrct one, 11 conlains thc entire eqscncc uf Vedanta [phili~sr~phy). Thc anc h a reads il n l w q ~ wilh 13hakli is rid all impurities and w e n the grcalcst of sins and bccomcs ~ibcrakd.*his Rurnn Hrudavarn is specially mcslnt o r all I'ailen people, sinners, murr.[crcr?i invdvcd in malricide etc.; Umse invdwd in accumulatim 01 monev and aduIkry, thieves and

d a c h who can attain thc divine status diffjcult fnr

rwtl

thc Yogis, by roading it with Bhnkti.

What a wonderi'ul thing it is hat Rama throws I hc dolor of this howkdge wide open 10 even 1hc w r s l category of people while Vrrlanlic rcxts, il1.C sclectiw in their cus~omcrsbv b i d [Ill: passing of their kncrwkdge ta rogues. people with had conduct and rhose lacking in austeriries etc,
w

Wnnblc to bcnr ihc b u r d ~ ncauscd by i h c

riln~citicsr,l rhc dcrnnns [rakshasas] I

by thc

~nighty Ravana, Moaher Earth accilmp;mied bv Ikrhma approached Lord Vishnu and pleaded her L'IISC. Vishnu promised 10 do the areedful, bv being . .

barn as the son of King Dasararha. The various

gods likc indra were asked to he born ns monkcvs in ardcr to help Vishnu in his s v ~ a r a .
I

At Ayodhua, King Dasatatha performed a

sacrifice IyajnaE called 'Putra Kameshti'. The Fire God appeared from lhc sacrificial firc and gave him
some divine milk pnrridge [pavnsam) 10 bc given lo his three quccns. Ln dwe counc, Lurd Ramn wns

barn ta Kausalya on the ninth lunar day in Cancer ascendant and in t h e astcrism of hnarvasu, was adorned by numerous ornaments and had anns carrying the conch, discus, mace etc.

"Oh Lnrd Vishnu, you are the iPunxs11ot1 [be31 among a11 bcings). It is y w who ccrcatc wurld, sustain it nnd finally destmy it. You d equally in dl bcings but only the w s peopIc ie xtblc LO see you. Haviilg been immersed in
occan rd' sansnra [phenomenal warEd] today I 1 cnme 10 your feel, Lord Kindly ensure that lovely form of F u r s will live in my rr
always and lct m c not be csvercd b y

"YnurselF and Dasaratha had dctnc ausreriries in vnur prcvjous births desiring me to bc born 3s 3 r n ~ ~
child. As a result nf your past tapasya (austerities],

able to see !his rarc fnrrn n mine T ;rnd the sight of this form beqtows mnksha Ilihcralion]. Whosecver hears or rcnds this t-c~nvcmation betwccn us will be able to havc my rc~itcmbranceat thc ~ i m c e l and will alsu Ili~vca Sarmpva Moksha {where one gcls thc s m e + icmn as the Lord)." Sri Rama then bccamc n small d ~ i l dand began 10 weep+
vrlu have been

In the meantime, Kaikcyi gavc birth tn Bhurata

lid Sumitra to k w h

- Wshrnnna and Satruglina.

'I'lw namc 'Rarrtn' was given L denfitc LRc t ~ n c a in

wllnrn a11 the sages and sainrs revelled when once

tlicir ignorance was dcsirnyed hrough the highcr
k iww ledge.
In this Rnmayana, Vyasa

has g i w n m r n c

vpiwdcs From rhc child-likc s l m l nf Rnma, which

I
I

r I s l t i l with 1Iw lcalas of Krishna.

h e day Rama w a s hungry and as his maiher did

not take notice of it, he lxxamc angry and was hitting at all the vmscls with n stick, 7- dsn poured 1 k c>ul all thc curds, hutlcr elf. and distributed lhcm tn his brr~thcrs.When Kmsalya came t catch thcm. lhcy all ran1 away, Kausalya pursued Rama and cuupht hold or h i hand bur withaul ndrnonishing him or tctling anvlhinp. Rama began + to wccp slowly. They grew up and under thc iuklngc or Vasistha, masrered a& thc kcrowkdgc and bccarne experls in archery, horseriding and all the
subiects-

Onc day Sagr: Kausika knnwn a!so a s Viswm itra, having kwwn lhraugh his yogic p s w m that thc Sufrremc Lrsrtl. had incarnalcd as Rarna, camc to Ayadhva wirh thc inlcnlian 01' seeing thc , Ialrer. Having been given a proper wclcorne by King Dasaralha, hc regues~edthc king t I t him take Rama and Lakshmana with h i This was nwcssary because he wanted lo have hem kill iwo demons called Maricha and Subahu and their t;ollowers who were giving trouble lo him evcry bay by obstructing his worship af thc Gnd. CT lhis rtquest were to b e acceded i t wnulcl he auspicious to ihe king.

I
I

Ilrisarntha could not hrmk any menlion or his scparntinn from his most h ~ k w ~ d ~8113c? son and hcs nlsn r i d or the cursc of Visvamitrrr it' hc w c r c to refuse m scnd his sons. Vasishrhrs .cr~unscll~.d king - "Look, mv d w r king, I shall Ihc + ~rll you something which liw iu bc kept 21s a ttcy \+met. R m m is not a human child bur is wrily thc Supreme Lord. Similarly. Lakshrnanzl is Adi Scsha Illw serpenl bed of h e d The Maya crl' rhe 1.m-d is born as Sita, [fie daughter wl lanaka. 1 mission in this wnrld i s tn reduce thc

various Astras (divinised arrows) along with rhc

secret use of the Mantras fssmed sytlablcs). The next day morning [hey rcacl~cdSidclhasramsr whcrc Visvamizn lrad his Jwcllin;g, Sage Viswarnilra along wiih many oilter sages started his yajna (fire sacrifice) guarded by the two princes.
By n m n , thc lwo demons, Maricha :~ndSubahu

wcrc s w n raining blood and banes all over. Rama scnr iwo arrows. One of them sent Maricha Ilying hundreds of kilometers away and threw him into the aman, The second m o w took the form of fire and reduced Subahu to ashes. The rest o f the fol1nwers wcre all killed by Lnkshrnama, Visvamitra's juy knew nn bounds,

Iic srarted for [he capital of Janaka sbng with .. the princes and other sages, in ordcr to show to Rame a unique bow of Lord Siva kept in ihc custody o King Janaka, f
Enroute lhep reached Gautama's ashram where Ahalya, the w i k of Gaurarrfa Mahamhi, having been curscd by the hrer had been dning difficull tapasya Iausteritics) withnu! food and water thinking f Ramtt with clnc poinied

wind, standing

o n a rock invisibly for several

ihrruxandrr o f + wars. At [he behest nf Visvamitra,

l?:~mn rrrucl~cdthc stnlic and Ahalya, lrccd Irmn rhc:

curse. ws standing bclbr-c him. Ahdya bcgm to

"Oh Lord, t

am rhankrul la yau f'or lnuching

me with he dust of your lotus fcct, which wen Gods like Rrahma and Siva long for. You h a w
deluded the world in your disguise as a man,
You iirc the fomless reality without any senses

like Fee1 hut y{\u

always moving. Whal

not wnrship anybody other than Rams who has

laken a beautiful human I'urm, with a bow in

his hand. in mv heart .

r always think"' of that

It

is the grcatcst blessing

that ihis

Ramn

is the same infinite Suysomc Being w l

is s e l f - d l u l g e n t a n d has ttlkcn up i h world-bewitching illusory body, T take rehgc Him.'L

'" bow lo your Ic~tus k c ! which Lakshl

has hugged to her breast and is fundling the

with love. You had measurcd all the rhrl wmlds by one foot a1 vows [as Trivjkrarn~ You became thc chiect of medication only those sages wha have no trace of ego in the1
d

"You arc bal h inside and oulside ever where like h c Space- Still you rernnin untainir
and detached .Yuu are morionless. pur

enlightened and an immutable Reality.

"'I,urd gram me that wherever I may remain, Imav have an unfhchiing love towards your lotus feel alwavs, at all times.'" +
d

"I bow to you'" [hc chicf among men. I bow 10 YOU, who i s 1 laving to all Rhaklas (devotees). Oh Lord of rnv scnscs, Oh Narayana, 1 bow to you.
"1 worship Rama" along with his hrothcr,
C

who i s the only anc who i s capable nf dispelling the fear or Sansara. Hc is shining as crores of Suns. Hc holds the O W :~nd arrow in his hand and i s shining like a dark clwd, Ik is wearing a h c l y gi~ldcmgarment. He i s - - . --[ring the ear-rings made a T diamnnd and broad cvcs Iikc a lotus.
I .
7-

Having ~ k r c d pravers, Ahdya went her ty and joined her husband,

The trnc who rmds this sl~s1r:r wilh iclve rlcvt,ricm will h a w dl his dcsircfi fulfilIccl. clnc who reads i t w i l h lrhakti while ~ccnlratingon Rama with the desire h r I a o n will bcgd a child within a year

even if the mother is dcc1ared to be; barren. Ultimately, kwd from all sins, the rcader of this stalra will be uniccd with the Suprcme Brahman.

Visvamha continued on his way to Mithila. There is a fascina~inginterlude, which has been repcated by Tulasidas in Ramacharit Manas [Ramztyana). They had to cross the River Ganga. The boatman rcfused Rarna7s entry inla his boat. He told:"Sir, I cannot allow you into my boat unless- you allow me to wash your feet first in remove all Lhe dusl from it. It iis well known that ahe dust o yous feet turned a stone into a f woman. There is not much d i f f e ~ n c e between my hoar madc of wood and a stone. If my boat i s lumed into a woman, 1 shall lose my only means of livelihaod and my family will crime into rrrsuble. So, please allow rnc ta wash: your feel." Rama smilingly allowed him to wash his Fcet. Whcn thcy met Janaka, thc king o r Milhila. nl VJswamitrnmsbchcst, ihc mighty Siva's bow was brouphl bcforc thcm, drawn by 5,000 labourers. R a m ioak it in play wilh his ]cat hand and when he jusl drew back tlw siring

the entire bow broke inla two pieces with a frightening sound. As Jnnaka had pmmiscd to give his daughtcr Sits in marriage to the warrior who handled the bow, M a came with a golden garland and pui it on Rarna. Da~arathnalso came 1 Milhila with all his family membcrs, courtiers ctc. and Sito was m a r r i d 10 Rarna i n thc lraditional Vedic manner. Rama's brothers wcrc also mamicd sirnullancously lo iamaka's brother's d a u ~ h ~ e r s as also h i s own daughter.

of thc w

g thc cntirc cntoursge startcd fnr Ayadhya, enrnulr:, t h e l'amous Parasurama with a bow and an axc i n hiu hands whn was ~ ~ O U fnr .killing numerow K proud kshntriya kings, blockild rhcir w a y . With all the arrogance at his command, hc chRUcngcd R m a for a duel and said:"Why should you boast of having braken an old and dilapidated bow of Lnrd Sin? h w this bnw of mine which belongs to Lord Vishnu and then 1ct us fight a ducl." Rama snntchcd 1hat bow, put his own arrow on il and kcpi, ii drawn. Hc askcd Parasurama - "My arrow can nlrvcr be wasred. O which parget sItnl1 1 send n

When, after the r

this arrow? Shall I destroy with his arrow your pro~pectsin this and nthet worlds or shall I hi1 at your feet so that ynu will he prcven~cd from going anywhcrc in this world or in the other world?"
Parasurama began Rama:1 ofkr 0

his praises to

"Now 1 recognize that you are thc ancient Supreme Being Narayana Himself. Long back, T s r d Vi~hnulefi a part af the p w e r d blis Purr: Consciwusncss in me and prnrnised to tukc it back w k n -rewould incarnate as Rarna, the son d Dasasalha. Naw T remcmbm it. Bkss~rlC am that you hnvc appcarcd bcforc me.
"Just as the bubblas in the water, though they seem to be apart from the water, are mat different from it, Maya is dependant on you, h a you as its content and does its work Maya is not samcthing apart from you. Being surrnundcd bv Maya [avidya), I e do not understand you. As we do not d any selfenquiry (vichara), thc ignorance continues. O n iiccount of this ignmance favidya), Ihc Power of Consciausnless which g ~ r srellcctcd in thc

bnby-mind complex is known as Jiva (lhe individual soul]. 0 long a s you idcntify ynurficff with and think [hat '*I am the body, I

am the intellect etc." Ihc cgn thn! I am ahe doer or cxpcricnccr, 1 am a sinner, I am happv nr . unhappy czc. ccln~inucs.The Sclf has nn birlh ar death, Thc intclhxi has nu cunsciousnc~s. tt is insenli~nt.On accounl d' lack n discrimi~~nT tinn wc du not discriminate lx-iwccn tl~cScK and the inzcllcct [BuddhiJ, 'The mind [chitla] which is insentient bcgins to think h it i s conscious [chetsarval d m 10 i ~ s association with the Self (Atman],

becomes thinner and thinner, Then the person gets the" Paroksha (indireel) knowledge of yourself (Rarna) and also pe a sadgum, From the sadguru hc gets ihc knowleclge nf Maha Vakyas likc "That Thou Art" and thcn hy your [Rarna's] Grtrce gets liberated. Thcrsc who arc bcrefi 'LF your bhakti can neithcr gc\ tlse Supreme Knowldgc nor mu kli [libcralian) nor happiness even a h r hundreds or crnrcs or kdpas.

"Let whatever merits (Punya) have been earncd hv me for allaining ather plancs of existence ilokn) Likc the heaven be entircly taken awnv by your arrow. I haw tr, you again . . and again. PFcase grace me that 1 aEwavs continue la have he company nf your dcvaees and have firm dcvolion zo your fwr."
w

Parasurama dm quested rhai whosmver rcads this praise [Stotra] nf Parasusama should be endowed with bhakti even if he had none cadicr and with remcmbrancr: d the Lord at the lasl moment of his life.

Parasurama went away to Mahendm Mountain and Rarnfi to Ayodhya alang with his wife, brothers, father and all thc rdinuc. A h sometime his bruthccs Bharatzi and Sntrughna went away to their undc's (Yudhajit] house l o spend 3 fcw months there.

Bart -11

One day, the s a Divine Sagc Nsrada camc ct

to I3hagavnn R m a in ardcr to rcrnind him of thc

pwpasc uf his Avatar, i.e, to rid the world of thc wickcd demons like Ravam.
King Dnsarntha infurmcd his traditional prriest

Vnsishtha nrtd his chief Minislcr Sumstntra that hc

had dccidcd to coronate Rama rlte eldesl son, in

the kingdom of Avodhya Lhe very nexl day as he .

had bccume old and all the senior citixcns as also his ministers have been full of praise F r Rama. He o ordered Vasishthn to inform Rama and to make all preparatians.
Vasishlha w m 10 Rama and as he was dready

aware that Rama was verih the Supreme Lord who . had taken thc form for rhe destruction OF Ravaria. began to p-aise him+ Adhyalrna Ramayanam is full of Stutis (poems of praise) of the Lord by various persons and each of thcm claims that a 0 hear or read those praises is a great Sadhana. These Stutis or praises are only

( 1 I Our [ h a ' s ] undescrvcdness, humility and lack of qudifica~ions&her ta du sabhana or ra gel the grace.
( 2 ) The Lord's glorious and lovable qualities like genermily. easy acuesslbili?~, d

i~~exhaustihle lovr;, immense mercy etc.

Nats: 1 mri 2 cnsurr: tha! nur e ~ is ttdwccd, o

b

( 3 ) Expression of our

own desire 1 have s

1.nrd's darshan [realisation) a d an exclusive i n for 1 alme (This will reduce. our i r tlachernent to worldly objects1.
( 4 ) Thc lasl i s surtcnder i+c. cnrnplete

rlcpcndcncc on Gad and God done, wc nurselves bcing u t k t l y hclplcss like n newbnrn child.

narrated in Adhyaima Rarnayann will fix nux attention s totally on the sports of the specid manifestalions of !he Suprcme God ihat it results in forgetting nur Rouse, friends, office and the cnlirc: world {Prapanclha Vismatanam). In addition, the profuse philosophical teachings which arc intcrspcrwd with the story will also inspire the seukers.

To revert

to h e narration of the story.

Vasishtha prayed:"Lard. 1 am supposed to be your Guru but you are the Guru d all thc Gurus i this world. n You arc the indwellrrr in out hcart and thc I d e r uf our pilgrimage on this earth, though invisibly. You have assumed a body or pure canscinusness w i ~ hyour Maya and bchavc like: a man in this wntld h r hlfilling a divine mission. Lord. g m me ~ a boon thnt thic Maya (Power 01' delusion) which is under your con~rcllmay never enslave me. YOU may consider this as ihe Tees [Bakshina] far my being formalty your p." he also informed Thcn him of his impending coronation the nexl day

morning.
In the mcnnlirne. Mnnthara
a

hunchbacked

fernalc nitemlant of Knikeyi w m t to the latter and

poisoned her mind by telling that if once Rama

were to take over lhe kingdom, R h a r ~ i awould

his scrvmt while Kaikevi would be reduced tn the stalus f i n 21 servant to Kausalya. It was also significanl that Dasaratha had managed to send away Bharara ro his unclc',~ housc. Mnnthara rcmindrd her of Lhc two bmns prarniscd to hcr carlicr bv Dasaralha long back and kcpt in resene. She persuaded Kaikcri 10 prctmd Irl be angry and to ask for the boons when the K n ig I)asaratlia came to supplica~cher. Thc two bmns w r e tha~ I3harm should be installed as h e ruler of Ayodhva and Rama was lo be banished lo live in a Ir>rcsl for fourteen years Ihm the very next day- In ~liis context i is very clear that wc should avoid the ! ~ w r i p a n q "of wicked people as it would easily ~ m-rupz our minds, even if we happen tr, h t rull d' p o d qunlitics and conduc~, wilh high mmil values m high dewlicm to ihe Gum, highly Icarncd and I +
rcmain as
I x . (31) ! & ? S V ? T ~ T f ? ~ l ~7lWl q ?

m .l%m5m i m
gmT-m-YrFjmfsrsi TI-#

nI
41LX2)

rn M;rcgs*rsfhnRiit~~nrai*~ll

( w ] m :rn: v&ma

Fd*

%I

m-3m1

endowed with discriminatitm. This i s a very important thing lo he k t in mind during nut sadhana pcrind.

Kaikcyi Mlowcd the advicc of Manrhara to the tctter. Thc king, w h o was shuckcd beyond masurc. while qrceing to the first boon ix., to make T3harata his heir to thc kingdom tried La persunde her nnt 10 insist on banishing Rama ti) thc I'L~sI. Kaikcvl. was adamant and warned that if the king wcnt back nrr his earlier promise to grant her two boons he would nnly 10 go to hell (narakal. Further shc would commit suicide either by hanghp herselif m by taking poison. The king re11 down unconscious likc a dead man.
d

bikcyi scnl ibr Ramn and apprised him of thc cntirc matter. Shc 1018 him ihar in ardcr to prcvcnl h i s I'srthcr l'mm going back on his promise, Rama had l lmvc L r lhc Lbrest the very next day. T i a b hs was incurnbenl on Rama as a dutiful sfin. By h a t time, King Dasaratha who h a d regained consciousness intwvcned and t d d Rarnxand ns such conlused. You just put n c in prism

and gnk thc kingdom by hrcc. In this manner, no sin due f ~ bbrcaking of prnmisn will accrue 10 mc."

'I'hus saying

he began to cry Ioudly. But Rama ~mnsnledhis falher saving that h e would Icavc fm the forest immediately in order tn fulfil the latter's promise and the Di~inlemission. Rama took leave his mnthes Kausalya after consding her, I,akshmann's rage knew no bounds on hemirig i s news and hc burst out:- "1 shall imprirron Dasaralha whn is mad wirh his infatlaalion h r Kiiikcyi, kill in f i ~ h tBharnta or whncvcr nypow..s riic and shall install you rm the lhrnne. Ynu will Iwfi~Id valour mday." my
Rsma advised him tl~us:

"If nntv the kingrlwn'", our brx1ic.t m.,which r seen b- US were to be true and real. voltr .. 1r1T'nrts 10 sccurc ihc kingdt%m t r n will have snme meaning. All the eniovrnents of ihc wnrId are .. lleering like the Iigh~ning,The i~norannp w p k king unaware lhat they are alrcady in the mouth r \ T a big serpent called death undertake various
C

- -'t) hndy is diflcrcnt and separate from the Sell.- The

union with our parents. son, brohr, wife etc. i s just like the various pieces of wood, which moct in the current of rhc; rivet temporarily and then gr, on their own ways. What is this world aficr all? It is all likc a drcm and onc is beset with various diseases. Ir i s dl ilh,wory. Everyday our lire is cbbing nut. Thc hoIish people conrinue to run after enjoyments and they do not understand the reality. l'hc old age is standing" before us threatening like u femak tiger, Identifying mesell with rhe body, a gcrsnn says, "I am a famous king". The body is a house of wmrn;c', I'utl of excreiim and whcn it is burnt. i t is reduced to a handful nl' fishes. HOWcan this" body which is subject to irandormation and changes be rhc Self ? Taking your stand on this body, you want to fight all the world, The idea that I a m the hndy i s ciilIed ignorance (avidYu),The idea that 1 am no1 thc body bur I am thc cnn lscimis spirit is the red knowledge lvidya). 1 i s avidyn which muscs birth rind death and i t 1 can he avcrtcd nnly ihrough vidyn. A scckur al'tcr moksha shauld practisea' this vidya wirh all cf'fi>rt.
1

32. 23.

gm ~ - 4.-~ 4 (11-4-31 I L d F7;mft sRw#? % m ~ ~=Iwt114-3f) i mJrmFl: RR W8 k W d I

51t1

-11

(114-34)

Ih e , Tus! or desires [kama) and angcr rim the main tmernics. Anger done is enough lo nhstruc~our path mokghsl [liberation) and a man i rage docs not n hssilatc lo kill his own beloved relativcr likc father, Imther ctc. The mindi" gets heated wirh sngtr. Anqer binds you to the: wurkl, Angcr dcslrtws all .. +
yrwr o
r uulcrcs. Onc must abundon anger and

wck peace by being cuntml wilh what one has.

Advising Ihus, Rama inFomed Sita also nf the impenddig journey to ihe foreit that very day. He a p e . . ta bath Sita and Lakshrnann accnrnpanying hiin for the enfire pciiod aF fourteen years.
When Rama came out walking on foot on the
highwav nccumpmied by S t a and Lakshmana all
J

Ihe citizens were overcome wirh grief and began to pour abuses sn Kaikeyi who was responsible For this state of affairs. They all wanted 10 abandon Ayodhya and accumpany Rama to the forest. Varnadeva, one o f the sages presenl began to console Phcrn.

"This Rama is the Supreme Lord who is ' known ns Vishnu or Narayana. Hc only became I Drahrnn (the crcamj, V i s h u (the sustainer) and Rudra [ t h e destroyer). H e had Laken various Avarars Like rhe p a l Fish M s . Lhc Boar ( Varaha). Narasimha (half-'lion man], Varnana ctc. and is now masquerading as Rama, i mdcr to kill n 'crores of demons like Ravana who i s m i wlnerabk to death except in thc hands o a man. Sita is rhc f Yoga Maya of thc Lord r n s i for the creation, sustenance and dim-dutirrn of ~ h c wnrld. She is also known as T,akshmi, So Rama has 10 go tcr the fntcst in order to fulfil the purpose of his

wrrtar. Neither the king nur Knikevei i blamed for his b'nrcst !rip.
a

rsl

bc

Those who chant" Ramzi's nanic rcpealedlv will be free From dl Fears including rbr dcath. Where is the question of any sulkring or sorrtw Tor R ~ m a ? In Ksliyuga" liberation will be attained solcly by taking Rama's name and not bv any ather means. This i s Ihc sccrct of Sita and Rarna, Whawcr Ehinks of i t always is surc to gcl Vi-jnana Icxpcricnrial k k w l e d ~ as a 3 l'irm Ilhrik~i-'' ) ~
H

Rama along with his IblIawers was a l l drcsscd

in tree-bark and having taken lcnvc of his grief <tricken falher, left b r the forest in a chariot driven by Sumantra and follnwcrl up to some distance by ihc citizens o f Awdhva,
4 e

not to go inside any t a w village and nm 10 cat any fruits ~ t cbr~ughiby other pmple, for fourteen . years. He SICPI on a mar r,F darbha grass thal nighi, The ncxt day Guha lank him acmsu thc river in his boal. A h visiting the great sage 'I3haradwnja hc: wcnl to h dshrama or Vdmiki in Chirrakula mcruntain. Rams rcqucsted Valmiki to dirccl him L u a g m d plnm Tar s ~ a ing F r a few months. Valmiki y a smilcd and aid:- "Oh Rama, you are ihe bed dwclhp place for all people and for you, aU the bcings me your dwdling places. There are some special homes also for you as follows:l r o

those saints2' who arc pcnceFu1, ~rcaiingcqudlv all k i n g s and not hitting nny are y o u r home. Fn rcspccl I ' those who have abandoned nll dharrnas-" (duties) and adharmas (sinful actions) and arc constantly warshipping you, thcir h a r t is h home of yourself and Sita. 1~ respcclt ol' those who chant your Mantra isawed words), surrendered themselves to you, bereft of
The hcatls
rlT

pairs of opposite like heat and cold, .joy nnb wmnw and arc free from atkichcmcnt their hearts are your home.-" Thc mind nf rhosef' devnlees whn neiihcr hale an getling scmtelhing they dis3ikc nrw rcvell i jov on gelring something plcnsing and n * wlsn whdc-hcnmdly warship ycru altcr coming 1hc conchsion lhnt all clsc is unrca3 and ig ol' ihe rlaturc uf Maya. is y I In rcspcct n1' those wl~osuminds haw bccn3=firmly en~renchedin yc~u hy cnnslanl practisc and thusc who arc mmplctcly cqslabIished in serving your Imly f ;and those whasc sins h a w been dcstrnyed by ihc glory o t' your narnc, vou dwell along with Sita in h i t luius IIC~~S.''
a

Valmiki narralcd his own life story 11s to Iinw, f'l'nrn bcing zr thief' and a murdcrcr hc was miscd ta I tic level ai a Brnhminic sage o n a c m u n l ctimiing Ramnarn on thc rcvcrsc [us Mnr3, Miirii) h r 3 long t h c with an uric-llointcd mind. Then he trrcsk lhcm to s placc between !he mountain and

the Ganges and gnr constructed two hermitages with the heIp of his disciples. Rama dong ~ i r h Sita and Lakshmana began to live there.

jn irhc mcanlime, ta rcvcri In thc sccnc in Ayadhya, as soon as Sumnntra rcturncd nnd gave Ihe cnnsoling message of Rama Lr, King Dn~ratha. thc Iattcr JcR his [ifc.
I3harala was brought back urgently from his nncle's house but was shnckd to learn l h m his rwn mother, h e r rnanoeuvering ta get the kingdom for her son Rharata and to banish Rams fnr fourteen years to a forest rcrsuhing in the demise of his own father. I-Tc was ;cluck with immense grief and after ahusing his mothcr i no uncertain l c m s n swore berare KausaIya his awn innocence by not be& a party tn h i s mother'! devilish machinatian. H perfhrmcd thc lasr rites of-his fazher. Rhama e irrformcd Vasishtha lhnl hc would b lenving thc ncxl day tt, bring back Rama to be instidled on the throne. Till thc rciurn of Rslrnn hc vowed l live o on r n d s and roots, ta sTecp on Lhu floor and L u wear matted hair.
Bharata started on his jnurney the very next day escnrted by Salmghna leading the errtire a m y and accampanid by his mothers like Kauslllyrl crc. and

Vasishtha. Enrwuk he met Guha thr: king 01' Nishadas nn the bank nf the Ganges. Guha was cxtremely pleased to see the unswerving and mmcnsc love of Bharata tn Rama, He tmk [hem itcross the G a n p x In his boats. !laving availed oP t tic hospitality wf Bharndwnjtr Rishi, Rharntn rcachcd Chilrakubsl along with his cntirc rciinue. He d c went to the cortagc vf Rzlma nncr keeping hi9 Rn ;rmy at n distance and mcl R m a and Sirsl. Rann crnbrarrcd him with all love. l-lc prcctcd his h r Vasishtha etc,, as per Lraclilir,n. On Itcwing of his father's demise he wept bittcrly and r~thersalso iblluwed his example.

Dharata rcfused I gn back and starled to irnrwolntc himself in a fire i crsc Rams did not n

agree to his remaining with Rama i n he ic~rest

itself. Then Vasishrha took Rharatn aside and revealed to him lhar Rama was nn other than thc Supremc God Marayana nnd J,akshmnna was Adi Sesha. They had assumed thc humnn form Ibr
Lhc purposc nf deslroving Rrlvncr~,i l ~ cking of +

rakhasm. Kaikeyi's asking for ihc two hrmns c ~ c . . was aU willcd by lhc Lord ta enablc him to fuulril

I-k adviscd Bhamla not to insi on Ramn's return tn Ayodhva bur t return 1 Ay~dhvahimself with all his fallawn. Uhara~aw; , nmazcd to hear this divine secret He begged f( t h ~ sandals OI Rama and got them. Hc ton Leave of R m a with all bhakti with thcse pariir words -'%' onlv you fail 10 retm nn ihe very ne: dav d ~ e r ending of ibwrieen years, I shall cntc . . the inlo fire immedialely."
his divine mimion.
s

Bhamtn wcmt to Nnndigrnrna [at h c outskjr of Ayodhvn), and ins&Ucd 1hc sandals of Rama c a tbonc, Daily he uscd 10 ofkr Pmja and flowe to zhc siirtdnts as if offcrirrg to Kama hirnsclr an apjriuc the sandals of whatever work relating to me h afl'airs uf thc kingdom ~ m place each day. He k himself lcd s very ausqere Iife of celibacy. sleeping on the ground, livhg on fiuits and roots, with full

control over his senses and wcnring matted hair and ehc hark-garment.

After somc t i , Rnma lcfi Chitrakuta and decided to go to 1 1 f~n d a k a J'nrest. I-lc lirsr went i to the Ashram of Atri Maharshi. Atri and his wife .4rrasu).a presented R a m and Sita with mamy gifts.

Pure Brahman arc one. One has ta develop intense Bhakti for the Lord. It i~ Bhakti which b d a one to the find knewlladp, whcn anc bccorncs une with thr: Lord.
3 . One should cansiantfy pray I'ike Kausalya to thc Lord with sincerity to prntcct: cnc f m thc clutchc~d Map, which entangles and dmwns nne in Sansarrt.
4, The Avalaras Iikc Uama and Krishna are

b q m d doubt Sorms assurncd by the Supreme Lord far thc benefit of the scekers who are unable to think of a formless Reality, The forms and 'Lhe formless Reality are h e two sides of the same coin. Evcn ihc h m d e r nf Nan-dualism v b . Adi Sanknra had cnmposcd poems or praise an all conceivable gods with form like G;incsa including on Ganjp, N-m-nada and Yarnunn rivcrs which arc dccmcd in be
divine,

with seeking the c o m p n v d holy men and saints - which is called Saisanpa. Tt is that which generzltcs love and clevrrtinn to the Lard, Then he gets a Sadguru whrr lcads him It, libcratinn, The
%

5 . The spiritual life starts

a

ul1irn;itc hctor in libcratian is lhc G r i m of lhc

Lord.

6. Prayers o r Grace a r e an dfective prelude 10 meditation. Anv pmblcms in malerial 1 0 i n spiritual l i e or in sadhima like m ~ d i t a t i o ncan all be 0 1 solved through prayers. We can adopt also and recitc same of rhe paems d praise, which c u r at vzirissus plnccs in Ramayana.
7 . E v e n i T w e r e not I to have Satsanga, the company sf bad and wickcd people should be avnidcd ar dl cc~ts.
8 . Wc h a v c tu ~ ~ n t c r n p l n ton lhc c

cvancsccn t nature n warldl y ctljoyrncnis, develop a distas~cand dctachmcni 1i1 cna11lt: us

to forget 1hc world. God and the Wcwlcl arc at

oppusite ends. Wc have to abandnn Ll~cWorld for catching G o d . to c n n b k us IO h a w perennial bliss and S hanti {Pcacc).

ac\ions in previous births,

whosc rcacti~n

comes k us as sufferings i~ subsequent births. e

10. Spiritual life is only a wav of liting our normal life in the best manner and i t is nnt something separate confined to a few hours. X f e shauld develap equal lnvc and l>ehrrviour towards all.
1 1 Leave nl! dharmas and adharmas and

be whdly engaged in worshipping ~ h c Lord, i n Kaliyuga. by chanting God's name atone: [like h r n n a m j one a n attain liberation. 8e free from hate and artachment. Accept whal comes and leave ofl' likes and dislikes.
12, Consrant practice is essential as this done cnn draw the Grace of Gad lo aurselves. We should sui+render oursches e God with a failh whulc-hearkdly. Chanting the mantra or the namc of the Lord cunstmtly at dl lime5 is Lc easiest wav 10 liberation, h +
AYDDHYA W N D A COMPUTED

d Rama. grant me ij lmm that mv rr~itd shnuld always wmemhcr your lotus fmt, my rrmguc shi~uldalwavs sin^ ynur name, atld my cars ~;l~r~uld always be hearing thc n m n r of your luclz~ I , [.,el my hands always husy thcmsclves with wnrshipping your leer and let my hend dwnys tic at ynur i m t doing prostrarims." Thus saying hc Mi I'or the hcavcn.

"'Oh I

Mnrc o less a similar prayer i s made by the r demi-grids [Nala and Kmbara] to Lord Krishaa, i n Srirntld Bhagavnlarn. As ihe author or this Ramavana is Vvasa. hc hns lifted many u scntcnuc + as they arc I'rarn Srimnd Bhagavatam nnd
incwpnsalcd them or thcir idcas in this Ramaynna

too in scvccnl phccs.

Even a deman-Iikc Viradha gets a guod destination [sadgari) by the merc touch of Rama's m o w , Whdhcr in anger or harc o lave if only we r adhere to ihc3 Lnrdk fccr, wc will atsr, be blessed wilh 1Iis divine tauch, which will transform us,

On i l ~ ewsv, Rarna met a sagc caEled Sarabhanga. Hc said, "Rama, T was wailing for you dl Ihcsc ycurs while d n i h ~ penancc. Now that my T Rave sccn vau, T wan1 to lcave this bndy withnut + wailing tr, enjoy the f r u i l ~of ~ h c merils [Trunva] 1 .' hrivc e m e d . 1 dcdicalc and surrender to uou all ilw Puma lying 3 my crcd;~and rhcn I shall h a w my 1
d

1ibcr,?lti0~,

All thc rcsident snga or the D;lndnka forest came 1t1 sscc Rama. Thcy wcrc all aware that Ramst was lhc Swpremc Lord himscIf. They p?eadcd with Rnma tn relensc thcm I'ram Lc lurlurcs they were h

subject. tn i n h e hands OF rhc dcrnons. They shawcd Ramn around their As1l;cnrns and the latter saw on ~ h u way the p r y sight d dctached hnncls, hcads etc. lying evcrywhcrr, which wurc t h c rcmnants ol thc sages who sitting i n Samtldhi, duc ro ahcir lack of vigilance had l x x n c a l m away bv the demons. Rama livcd I'nr sornc y c m in that area and visited scvcral ashrams. Kama, intmalia, went L the Ashram d Sulikshna, u ' a disciple or Agastya, who was uvciaved a1 the . , . librmer's arrival. 1-Ic began 10 praise Rams:-

"Lord, I have always bccn chanting your ManIra and 1 am thc slaw of your sl~lvc.Thouch wu remain i~xvlsiblc[e the :,nrirls wnrtd you have yourself c o r n beforc mc wiih all cornpassinn, swing mt: drowned through your Maya in l h HTII ~ of house, son and . Even thnugh ynu al~ide" in the hearls af all bcinp, vou spread a u r net 01 w Maya on those who turn heir faces away frnm , your M m r a Japa, Maya gucs awav from ihnsc who are constantly engaged in t hc Sadhana 111' your Mantra, You allot results r t to thc
C

servicel rendered, t e 1 the Jnanis [people or knowlcdgc] h n w you to be Ihc light of consuiausnms in a form devoid of all conditioning like Timc and Spacc, As far ns 1 am conccn~edplensc grant me t h a ~this fnscinahg Form of youm, which slands Wnre me, may rcmain shining i my huarl forevern 'I desirc nolhing dsc, Rarna dcclnred that whasncvcr reads tlais Stuti [song of praisc] will puuscss gmd bhnhi md his kntlwledp ill become pure.

""

Ncxt day Rarna was taken by Sulikshna tu set his Guru Agasrvn, Agasiyn also nddscsscd a Stuii (song or pmisc). While summarising, hc said":"Lard, L c cssence of my teaching tn pmple i that h s onlv 3hc company af 11dy men and saints i s rhe main Factor leading to ?vlukshn."* Furthcr, only those who have cultivated ceasckss dcvrstion to + vou and worship you Lhrough your Manlras will attain

One day. while in Panchavatt when R a m wrls 4Ilinlr; itlonc;, Lakshmma appmachcd him und asked Tor h e way tn artain rnokrha v r i hhakli
(rlrrvntirrn), vairagva [dispizssinn), jnaria tint1 v i j r m r t *

[cxpcricntial knt~wledgr], pct Scripturc?i .;I Guru As

Ming any spiritual iruth unless specifically asked fox. One shnuld ask nnd gct clarithd any doubts Frnm Mahatm:ts. Raising a quc~linn doubt implies 11utni!ity and surrcndcring of the ega OF our own intdlecl.
is prohibited from

The reply can be divided into four parts:-

nalure (2) Aids nr Sadhonas T r getting knowledge ' 3 Jnana with o Vi-jnana (41 That. which is worth knowing [Supreme Lorill.
I
Maya's

1. Mayate nature
' T o considcr the nm-sclr .objects likc thc boc ;is our Sell' [cir 11 is cnltcd Maya and 1hc phcnr mend world i s crcakd by it. It is UC two kinds1

1, Vikshepaz- Thc afic which prqjcc snmdhing orhcr than whd il. i s h. thc 0 1 which projects a nnn-cxishg world on tl Brahman (Projecting PrwerS. 2. Avasana;- (Power 10 hide) Thc onc whir hides thc real knnwlcdge or Brahman,

"There i Bwhrnzin alonc, which is the ulrimntc s Reality and he univcrse i s an illu$inn super-imposed m h e Brahman, I1 i s j u s ~as in darkncss a rape is perccivcd as R scrpcnt and an I1rnpr.r cnqrtiry, the serpent ccascs ic, cxisl. Whatuver i s scen, hcard rar wmembcrcd hy pcclple i s all unreal just in tlw dream. Body-mind

assembly ar Zhc d'urcsiiid elements tntc.,ego, intcllcct, the five scnsus nf cu~nilitm,live ~;ctiscsd'wticrn, Lhil: mind [which i ;I rellcction 0 1 ' s wnscinusncss] and rhe prirnardial nature 1Pmkriti) I T known as the f i d d [Kshelra). This field ~xmslirutcsthe h d y . The Jiva which resides in ihc Imdv i as diflcrenl from thc bndv as ihe electricity , s IS rlil'ferent frum thc bulb.
r:c ~n~hinntion or

".Tws\ as a pcrt is in rcaliry rhc r11uJ

II

~11'which

is made and thc ptri i s an imaginal supcr-

"Again just as thc clcctricity in n bulb is the

s m c as

in d the bulbs as also in the gcncramr, l the Jiva is identical with [he Paramatma [the totality) and so is bereft of joy r l t sorrow, like or dislike, sin ar merit ctc.
11. The aids or Sadhanas for getting

Knowledge [Jnana1
"Lack or cga, nbandoning hypocrisy and

violcncc, LrWancc of censure from olheru, maighahvardness, service 10 thc Guru wiih d heart and I , p u t inside and outside, firmness irr good actions, control over thc mind, speech and body, detachmen1 towads abjects, conlcrnpIation on the hcls o f birth. old agc L C lack of attachment towards snn, wealth ctc., cquanirnity nf mind in prosperity finncl a~tvcrsi~y sccking places not crnwded and disgust fur thc company of worldy people a1 dl times, consmnr cfkrt ro get the knuwkdgc of the Self and contemplating on {he inner meaning 04' Vedanta (yhibsnphy) and last but not ihe least unswerving remembrance of Rama, t h e Supreme

Lord - thwc are the essential aids to gct right knowledpc,

Aulnrnaticalty whcd7 bhakti is generated. the Sadhak will get Vaingya early nnd get libcratcb by

attaining lnrrna and Vigmnna.

Lastly. the seeker-" who is always making efforts, seeks the company of the bhaktas 01' thc Lmd and serves them, who has a purc mind, is always busy with my servicc and possesses an infroulerling and calm mind, Moksha i s in his palm and he will he nbk ra see me, not otl~crvvise."
One day n rakshasi [demoness] called Surpanakha, a sister of the Demon - King Ravana was passing b r Panchavati where she happened to see the hatprints n R a m containing the marks of F h e desips of' lotus, a la weapon of Lwd lndra 1 elc, Her lust was aroused on seeing the beauty o f the feel and she went to Rama's hcrmitap, She wanted tn take to livc with her either Rama ar Lakshrnana both o f whom made fun nr h e r .

Surpanakl-la who was witnessing ~ h ci$l I'

shmcd by this uncxprrctcd turn
10 Lankii
tjl'

wris
nv.v;lv

cvcnh,

IW

and I'd;it the l'iee~ul' her brother Rnvan;l. the ten-headed king nj' rnkshasas crying all he v i l She reprimanded Rwaira for a101 haviiw 2 proper inrclligence deparlmcn t of spks whu had Iitikd to keep him apprised n Rama's presence in T
C

thc Dandaka rarest and the ignrlmininus death of K h a n and his entire army in a hr~rllew i ~ hRmnn who killed rhem all in a trice sinple handerlly,..She nnrrakd ta Ravana haw Sita was extraordinarily l m t ~ t i f ~bcfittinl a husband like Rawma and hnw ll

she was left disfigu~edby Lakshmana while she atxcmptcd to lift Sila for girting her 10 Ravana, ~rllirnatdylcading ro the dcalh of Khnra ctc. Ravana was unablc irr undcrs~nndas 1 haw such a powcrful warrior like Khnra nncl his c-nrirc army could h a w bccn exlcrmina~erlsingle-hnndcdly bv , Ram% an ordinary man. 1 . k concluded t h perhaps ~ it was rhe Supreme Lord Wimsclf who had come to kill him at the request nf Lord Rrahmii. T case n Rama t m e d u to be Gnd himself hc will die and rulc ovcr Vaikuntha by Lnrd's Grace. O~henvise,he could kill him if Rama was an nrdinnrv man and continue tn rule nvcr i h c kingdom of mkshasas. Ttttis musing, hc p r a y d In the d in beslow him with Ilis G r w c cvcn though hc was going z r ~~ C Rarna with an inimicul C intcni knowing wcll h a kc was Lard H i . Hc dwidcd trs ztdupt ;t rusc and win uvcr Rama by il trick. Hc went to the abodc of Maricha, his uncle w h i ~a drcsscd in lhu raiment of rishis with matted hair and immersed in Zhe mcdila~ionof the Suprcrnc 13cin~who was d e w i d c5r all allributei; and adjuncts [upadhis). Ravana snughl his h d p and reyueslecl him tr, go befme Rnma taking rhc fnrtn o i an arnaxing1-v uriiquc dccr, thus cnlicc and dewy -.
d

[n ihe meantime, R a m who already knew

whal was ta happen, called Sita asidc and told h m
ol'

thc plan ui h v a n u to abduct hcr. I-llc a r k d hcr 10 rcrnain invisible in ihc iirc h r nnc ycnr alicr kveping an illusory shadow Sita in her p l i w in rhc hcrniita~c,Sitsl follawcd his command nnd afiw i~istutlinga m#Yii Sitil, S ~ lrcrsulr clisqpcarcrl into C
tllc lire,

The illusnrv Sita, nn seeing thc unique po1dc.n * deer requested Rama to secure it h r hcr to play with. I m v i n g hcr in charge nf Lakshmma, Ram3 went behind rhe deer. T h e deer lured Rxmn away by suddcnly appearing nearby and disappearing by mnning away, It was clear to R m a that it was a demon in disguisc and so hc hit it will1 aa infnlliblc arrnw. Tlic decr 1 down dcad assuming i t s

original demon's 1'0r1n. Whilc railing down, i t irnilared Ramu's voice and cried loudly "1 am gone. Oh hkshmana, save me, quickly.'While the narne af b m a aiom is *adequate to bestow rnoksha, as Maritha died i the hands of the Lord looking at; n latter's h e , a b d i a n t light came out of his body and entered inlo Rama, This is the glwrv nf Rama that a sinner who habitually tnrturcd ihc Rishis could gel such a high state, Whether a man nt' high castePP a demon or a simer or a man of virtZJ~s, or whoever leaves his body remcrnbcri~gRama reaches the highest destination.
On hearing thc dcccitfrl cry of Maricha, Sita

took it h be h e ct-y of Rama h r hclp and nsl'tiscd a to be persuaded otherwise by Lakshmana whom

shc began l ahuse in mean and insulting wnrcls. o

Unwillingly thrqh, TAshrnana hurried 1-0 R a m ' s side whom hc found s n k arid sound,
On, sleeinq this situation, R w a m came LU Sila disguising himsell' as a rage with a shining rtanda h d y stick ) and a kamandalu [water rtxep~aclc)in his hands. 5ita invited him in with all rwpcct a n d ~ d k r e dhim a a I 'I - and liuim. Ravanii rcvcalcd his Iruc idcntity and invited hcr ta snmc with him and be a partncr in h i s cnjoymcnts. Sila rcbukcd him and ~ h r c s l k n c d him wilh dirc cnnsequcnccs nn Rczma's rclurn. Rnvnnn tnnk up his original tcn-hcadcd I'mm and carricd hcr almg with ihc r a r h on which she smnd by digging il up, wilhrmi tnuching lier body. This was b e c u w cursc that lic would dic if cvcr hc wcrc 10 rc ;tny warnan against 11cr wish. Ravruia 531 in nls i t w i t s t alung with hcr and ilcw h~ air,
d

her cldh requeslirtg thc monkcys to inform h m a , Rawma m m e d ovcr Zhc ocean, wcnl tn Lanka, instnlled her a1 ihc Ashnkavanam, a grove imide his harem, in thc custody of several rakshasis and con~inucdto look after her as il' she wss his own resp~td mathcr.
In Llw mcanlimc, both Ran13 and Lnkshrnmn I~urrictlinwards the hermitage i n s t i n c t i v d v suspccling some unrowslrd happening only kc) flnd Lhal 5 i h was no1 iherc. Immcdinlcly, both d thcm lcfi sczrrching for Sjira. On ihc w m Jatayu whn was +

lying wowndcd and in his last morncnts gave thcrn rhc news o Sirs's abduclinn, Rama knrllcd Jahyu f who died wilh lhc happiness af Uhagavan's prcsencc at the last morncnl oI' his d ~ a t l xRnrna p ~ r f w - n c dthc last riles for J a i q w who, in a rcsplmdcr~l div3ne form sat in an acrid vuhiclc IvirnanaJ, praised Rams rind went away i n Vaikunlha, [he Lard's hoanc, Thc g r i d strickcn hmlhers went on their way smrching rnr Sitn. On thc way, Rama killed Kabnndha - n dcrormcd and disabled demon who grabbed them wilh his long hands in order to put lhcm intn his stnmacli, his h e a d having bccn sunk into the stnmach, As directed by Kabandha they reached !he ashram of Sahari, a inw cask woman thoroughly devoted 10

and wailing Tnr a number of ycats in see Rama.

Rama instructed her how in gc1 Bttakei and whaL were i t s aids:

4. Expounding nn the meaning or Lord's spiritual instruchns (as in Dl-lagavnd Gita).

-5 .

Virtuous behaviour, carrying out the

das and donts of scriprurcs like y a m and

niyama

. nan-stcaling, eclibsrcy,

cxtcrnal ctcmlincss, reading af scripiurcs

rtc.,

6 , Constantly and firmly k i n g cslab3ishc.d in God's Pnoju (worship).

7 Chanting of Mantras along with lheir . necessary pre-requisites like Nyasa (purificatory pr~ccss) etc.
8. Worship o l Lord's BhaklasdV(as the

diuinily is higher in thcm), to see Divinity and Lard's form i n all beings and desirelessness t w d s all cxternal objmt s.

9. Thc last but mosl" Impwlant a n t is contemplation nnd cnquiq) infa ihr: i l n d Rcditr behind Lhe entire world [TATTWA .
VICF-IARAI

gcncratcd. Bhakti leads to the dired" experience of the only Reality. Such a sadhaka 1 s f i n n l liherarion [mukli) in !his birth,
Sabari told Rnma that Sita was ar that time in Lankn and a h adviscd him to go ta Rlshyarna~~ka mnuntain near River Pampa and to make with Sugriva the king ol' rnonktvs, who was living with his four ministers in fear of his life from Vali, his mighty brother. Sabarj entered in!u fire in ihc presence af R a m and attained rnoksha.
d

o
d

r Siva cuntinued his narration of'

Rarnavana.
Rama and 1,akshrniina came ir, P m p a river

near Riqhyamtmka mountain. Sugrivii Ihe Vanam king saw rhcm from the mountain 1017. As Vnli was pcrsonaUy prcvcntcd by n cvrsc liwm venturing imo this mr.runtain, Supriva su~l~ccrcrl a t thcsc wcrc h perhaps the emissaries aT Vdi, desparchcd I'rw killing him. H : rcqucs~cdhis ~ruslcdlieutcnani r Hanuman la go and rind our who they were. Hanuman look thc disguisc of a bri~hmachari and accosted the primes d Ayodhva. Rama was irnprcsscd with W anurnan's schnlarlirtess and behaviour. 1 revealed h e i r idcnrilv and thc . . purpose or [heir visit v searching Tor Sita, Hanumm also narraled the story of Sugriva who was drivcn aui nf the kingdom of Kishkindho by his brother Vdi due lo a misundenranding a d how his wife had been taken away from him. He wantcrl Ksma 10 heuomc Sugrivo's friend sr, (hat they cauld he mutually helpful in s e c u r i n ~t h c rclcasc, of rhcir wives Prom i l ~ ccaplors. 1 . 1 ~ took
d

Rnmn pcrsuadcd Swgrivn zo go

Vnli 3116

cliall~ngr: him I'or n fight immcdiaiuly, Sugriva wcnl

:tccc)rbingly and fuught with Vali but w a s badlv h c a m up by lhc lattcr. Ranla who was hiding E~cltinclihc tree w s unable t aim his arrnw. as a
d

htrrh the monkeys were irlentic31 in their form and rlius indistinguish;1bl~from cnch nthcr- M e put a

parland rd llowers on Sugriva when he rcturnwi and pcrsusded him 1 0 60 r a second t i m e

rrnmedialely and to e n p a w Vali irr a I

Tara his wife dissuaded Vali from q,.oing

Even

@in si~speccingsome foul play, Vali did not heed ta hcr advice, While Vali was fighting, Rama made hirit his cargel and sent an arrow from his hiding place behind twn trees. Vnili fell down mnrtdly wounded and surprised. Rama camc and stood befare Vali in all his glary. "-" ---L-7id~dhim for his heinous a c ~ killin& ------ ---.- hide-out of 1 s which was unbecoming or u warrior or such sn illuWkws racc as kshwakus. I-ic himscrV could hilvc

more easily rcscued Sila horn ihe h;mds d' Kavana

Rama lntd him! ihat it was his l~nwndendutv

punish him f his tmtsgressim of nharma (virtuous path5 in tmjnying with the wife nt' his own brother Sugriva. Vali could then rccngnise him ils Ramn the consort of Lakslrrni, thc Suprcmc Rhagawan. HGraid"" "You arc thc l a r d by taking whosc name cvun in a wrong canrcxt ~ i t h o u ~ thc proper intcntinn, Ajamila who wn# ahout tn die, gat rnoksha. 11 i s mv luck hat yrlu iktt. standing bcfmc mc in 1hc hst moment of my life. Plcasc. shower vnur mcrcy an my son Angadii and mnke mv em! pninlcss by touching me with your handsST' . ,
10

Bhagawan Rztmn cxrractcd the arrow and placcd

his hands on Vali who reached such :r highcr plnnc. which was J i l k u l t be rcachcd cvcn by lhe grcat rcnunciatcs and 'Paramattansas'.

Vali's wilk Tara came uut weeping prd'uscEy iind pleaded with Rama l a k 1 her also. Rama then 3
consdm3 hcr:

Tarn then ques~ionedRama "This b d V i 9 Exking in Consciousness likc Lhc wrrotl while Jiva is permanent and d Consciousness. PIessc tcll mc l who is fh(: one that cupcricnces ,jou and sorrm.v'?" .

superirnposiiirm of Cnnlccinusncss on the inscnticnt body and vice versa. For instance, iT n good liknd and companion lcavcs mc and gtscs abroad, I become unhappy imagining how uohappv hc would br: by this separalion. Act~illlvthe o h r person i + s not affected ut dl and aficr ten ycars 3 c cm-nplcrcly 1 forgot me a d could not evcn rccollcct. So thc unhzlppincss 1 sullfercd was false. This sansara, in other words thc iron grip of this world would never gcz Iaoscncd by itseff as we will crsnlinue lo be engaged i ihe rhouqhts of a m tar thc n h r objects n .of his wor2tl". It is the mind, which becomes the wnrld and it i s the mind, which is a bondage. The &It' identifies itself with the mind and experiences bondage while enjoying the desired clhjecrs. At first the mind creaitcs through imagination varinus qualities e.g., lhat the -jalebi is swcct, Aclually all the virtues and defects we see in an nhject arc 311 sulhjcctivc and wc see ihcrn in mur individunlistic rwtlmk+ Thus due trs the ucrinns drmc, induccd hy tl~cVasanas Idcsircs) thc Jivn p x an wmckfi~ig horn hinh 1 birth till the d c l u ~ Thc causc bchind 0 i~ Vasrrnas and aclians is tlw ncscicmx [uvidya or

ignoranncc]. Agnin a t ihc Lime I ' r e i n t l ~ c

previous vasan:is almg wirh ihe mind gcr rcvivcd. rhc Jiva takes birth an$ thc previous coursu is repertcrl, Wlwn nt: lnst duc 10 somc special virtunus acts dnnc"", onc gets ihr: cnmpany nT saint.s (sa~sanga] and mv d c w ~ c s ,lhcn sltrwly his mind bcgins to turn iuwards me, Then s p d u a l -. hc h dcvclaps deep interesr (sraddha 1 in hearing God's sturies. Then, without any cffnrt he mmcs 10 know his own nature as to who he is. Bk ~ h c a c e d . p the Guru he comes ro understand the real meaning of Mahavakyas of thc scriptures and realiscs thc Atman who i of he form rd' Satyam ( R c a l i ~and s + ] Anmda (RWssI. Canlmplate on thcsc 1ru4hs told bv me and ceasing to bc affec~edby rhc series of rsormws, vau will be released h m ihc bondage 01' hirllh and desrh caused b y a c ~ i a n s . Remain contomphting on thcsc spiriiuirl Irulhs and mcditalhg on my fnm. Ynw will not bc tairttcd l?y irny aclirsns that E L I ~ C your lot bv Lurd's will," m On hearing these instmctions of Rarnach;indm, h r r l Ixsame not anlv freed from hcr sorrow but also I~ocamen Jivanmuktrt.
a

One day, Mshmana requested Rnrn;~~ rteach , him the method ol' "Kriya Marga" - i external puja of God. Rarna began his inslrwAjnns;-

"As per Scriptures a m should get wclrrwed with ihc sacred chmad (this is h r thc first lhrec cnstcs) and gct initiated into it rnwrlrti b~ a . Sadguru. He should do worshin Iprsrljii) in tbc manner indicated by the GI Jcwtion and slatuc, in the Iwc. Onc should worship C heart, i frc, in he sun or in a salipam stone. A! n the uutsct the seeker shcluld gel up in the rnorxlinp and lake bath fat keeping the body clcan. Chanting rhe Vedic mantras a prescribed m e should do the q Sandhva Vandanam [day-break praycrsI+ For anv karma, one has to d o a snnkalpa rncnlionin~t h c d purpose for which it is done, Then lnnc shuvld tin paoja of his Gum considering him as G d Jdimscll'. lf the icon i s madc or slonc nr metal, it should be given: a bath [snanm). The pacja js to hc d r ~ n c with rrrigrant flowcrs. One should t w c thc atiitudc n scrvicc nnd shnuld arcvcr resort lu cunning or T d e c c k lr one wnrships f i r c m e should pour
d

nblatians (ahuri) and if it is Sun m u shnulcf giw Arphya [watcr offwing], Thc Lord s a p [hat whatever is affcred to me with lovc is acceptabfecvcn if it is mere water. A11 the things likc flnwcrs, i n c m w sticks and aCTcrinp of catahlcs ~ h o u i dall bc col!cctcd and kept well bcrure stnrting the pmja to avoid gct~ingup in ihc middlc. One should sccurc a scat [usamm made up of cloth, dccrskh or barbha grass) a d sit bcfarc God [tlw m t u c fir painling or photo). One should da hhtruka Nv;rsa [OM AM Y A M M ; OM A A M N A - W - t clc.,) 'I'hcn nnc should utter h e 12 names or God - like Kesava, Na tayana, Madhava, Govinch e Then the Nvasns in fingers (tike Lam Pri~hiryAtmane .namah) e.g., n p s a of the h e elemenls, Mantra Wysa, Murlhi Nvasa ek.. shnuld k done. A Kalash . (vessel with water) should he kcpt in Trmr nrr the left sidc and flnwcrs dc. nn the right I Afkr sipping drops OF wawt [achsrrnanarn] mcdiwe in the hcart on ihc Sell: which is resplsndcnr like ihe Sun. and by imagination draw that power nf Pilramntmnn r i m insidc thc bsdv nnd i n s l ~ l lit UII the icld, With wiricw~ Lypcs i r i g likc P W a [watcr for washing fcez), Arghva (wakr I'm washing hands} ccc,. Ihc scrviers tn the Lord's idol [ incIurlics bnllmine. oll'crinrr ai"narrncm ctc.1 s1'10uId be d ~ l n t .

it11 thc ma

"Thc one who rcads n~ hears this sccrcl and holy narration direclly rram the Lnrd bccnrncs cntirlcd to all thc fruits of rhc paojjn itsclf,"

Supiva ;~ccwrnp;miw.l Lakshmana to visil Rarnn. He introduced dl he t'irsl lint rnvnkws likc. Yah, + Neela, Mainda erc., as brim af bivinc origin m d also Jambawn, the kinr of bears. In thc prcscnce of Rama, he sent ~ h c u s u i p of monkevs 10 h e various directinns for sc;uching Sita. Hanuman, Angada thc crnwn prince, S;~mbwan, N~lla,Sushma cic. wcre dircctcd 10 yn trrwarcls the S t Sugrivn warncd them all thal lhcv should -,
Q

return within a month and if n t ~ trhcv would bc su!-@xted TO dcath scntenw. Rnma callcd ll;~nurnan and handcd over his signet ring with his Dame inscrihcd on it, tu be giucn to Sib to ;ittest the gcnuincnrss OF his emissary. Whilc wanrlcrfiig in scarch t>T Sira, as thcv got ihirsty, the monkeys entered into a cave where they saw a waler pond with clear water. y saw a lone Iadv, a yngini sitting on a throne and immersed in mcditittion. On seeing and after taIking to them rh:tt h d . pcrmitkd v them to eal the Fruits avnilablr: k r c in plenty to
d
% -

cr~rnpmion told Iicr stnry lr? Hanuman crF flernlr rhc daughlcr d Li~wiwmnrrltlw divinc archikc1 and bui!di:r), tcs whom h i s plncc 11ad bccn gifted by Lord Siva who was p!cascd with her dancr:. 4 + name is Swayamprabh. My j'ricnd whilc m i away !a Brahrnafoka advised me Lo stav here and to do penance ftapasya) XQ help the monkeys, thc emissaries of Rama, Ihc Suprcrnc Lord. whn will come here searching for M a . Now lhat my missinn i s over, 1 am r,rring to h a v t barshan af Rama." She sent thcm 311 oul?iidc 1 ~ Guha by means a f hcr yngic prrwcrs and wunt irway to n r w l Ram:i.

marc Ihan rrnc mnnfh mrl thc p u p oI' mankeys whh rJiin~rrnnnand hg;ldii did nni s f a meel with any success in tracing. cwl Sih. Thcv wcrc by thc side, d t h c ~ , S W ~ ~ c t m n . Tkev lay down on the shurc having dccidcd tn end their livcs bv s i n . In the mcaniimc, n hie mountain td' a vulture c a m out o f a cave in t hc
I1 was already

. d

Mahcndra Giri and madc i ~ sway rnwords the rnunkevs congratulating himscll' ill gdting in;mlf monkeys which hc c ~ u l d mi on a iiumbcr 01' days at the rate d one per day. 'I'hc ~~~unlccys bcwn as l o .to wail loudly alwul their mission having faikd w d regretled theis inabilitv to serve K a m x They . praised Jalap ~ O Tihc scrvice h c rendered to Rama at the cosc f h i own lil'c. Simpathi lhc ~u2turc a cxtrerneIy h a p ~ v4 hear srme news nf his younger brnthet'Satavu aftcr scvcnl rhousand wars. Thc monkeys and Sampathi b c p n i n cxchangx rhcir stories uptcl [he lime n ! [heir mecling (In thc seashore, As Sarnpathi's wings had been scared and burnt off long hack, he was takcn hy the mwnkcys to the ocean. Snmpathi had a lmth nrld gzwc somc afkring wlkt LU his dead btnth~r ilnd was brought bnck 1n Ihe nrigin:tl placc. O being n cnircn!cd hy the mnnkevs as he was abk ro scc a + long distancc iticluding Lmkn wilh the I W . ~ ra t ~ p . ~ I
d

sight or a vulture, h r inh-med lhe rnonkcys "on

the i ~ ~ h e r of ihe ocean, on the top nf Trikut~ sidc mnunlain, Sit3 i s kcpt i kshokavana a[ 1,nnka and n h e is surrounded by rakshasis. I am riktc tn SCC h You will h a w to cross IIIC occnn which cxlcnds l r ~100 yojanas, in ~ r d c r SCG her. NOW to yuu people dccidc among yoursclvcs tts to who i s capable o crossing the ocean, of idking ro Sita and r
returning."

Sampathi ulso rold ihc rnankcys; hi^ nwn sbry as i how lic came to haw his wings i~uriitup. Onm trnlh Sarnpathi and Jatavu in rhcir yr~uthwere highly proud of their prowess and irnmcnse phvsical strength. Thev wanted 0 h t their own sircngth, Both hied tu lly up to the solar orbit and k w Lhwsands and thousands of kilomcrcrs. As they neared ihc Sun the heat was inlokrable and Sarrrparhi tried L prokc! h a y u by spreading his o own wing over him. He was burnt up badlv and + 1'cll down unconscious on the cath and acrnained sa for three days. After corning to his senses he dragged himself to a ncarby Ashram and norrared his talc nf w m to a Rishi called Chandramsr, Mc wanted 10 cclrnrnit suicidc as i t would he diFficult fnr a vulturc to live without its wings.
J .

The s a ~ cbegan ~ rgivc h m , i advice based WI spirilual truths:I

k w wurds

of

sorrows stem frnm thc body-mind carnplcx. The body again nwcs i s birth in i h s actinns [karma) donc. Tkc a c t i m s arc rnntivatcd by rhe ego ix, considwing oncsclf to be the body, The cgo ha!! no beginning and is caused by avidya Cignnrancc) and is itscll' insenlicnt. It is just likc when a n iron ball is Iwntcd in a furrnacc, heal pervades the cntirc bcdy ul' rlic ball. Thc egn Ilourishcs in the reflection of' Pure Consciuusncss. Due to its idcnrilimtion wilh the b d v , thu lattcr looks as i f it is c~nscious.The ego Iha1 "1 an1 thc body" i s responsible fur the entire sansara which is made up of joys and sorrows, Even though [he Self is changeless, on account I ' the false idmrifica~icmwith the body that '1 am the body' t h e enlire sansara d joy and s o , birth and death etc. bcgins 10 flow. Due 1 0 thc Ialse idcntificatim onc considers oneself as the docr nF nctims, does all achms (pond and bad) and gets bound by the h i t s nf actinns - sin and merit (papa and punyal. The Jiva goes up and down Ihcnvcn and hcll) to expericncc the PunyiI and phpa camcd. 1-le thinks that as he has dam virtuous deeds, like
A

giving in charity Idma), y a p s ctc., hc will go 10 heaven and eniov, Actually after crijtlying in the . heavcn he s to fall down when lhc slack of punyn has been wxhaustcd. He falls dnwn m r l coexists in thc grains and vegetables, When the grains etc. arc cclnsumcd by man, it is trnnsl'wmctl into wmsm and when it pcrvadcs thc yoni 0T n w m n n . in the intcrmursc it bccnrncs R fluid cmhryn in thc womb of that woman and crsvcrcd hy thc I ball 1 placenm On thc 71h nigh1 of Rcsh and in two n ~ a n ~ k s , ncck, h a d , shouldcrs, s~nmochc In thc
fifth munll~,1hc c ~ ~ n s c i ~ ~ ,- ~ ,,,.u t hc ~ , . ~ ~ factus. Then ii i s able 10 rremmbcr its past karmas and past births too. It re; icl bccn engaged in looking aflcr the I. t. munw by all mwns - slraighr and crooked and Itad never tl'tought of Gud cvcn in dreams. "Bccausc of this E a experiencing the fruit of past ac~ionsin bring m confined tr, this womb and svffcring il~csc.'T11js womb is just like hell. M e n shall I pet out of this? In future shall dailv worship Vishnu." Considcr + voursdf' as the Self beyond the Qmkri~i and lcavc off your 'minencss' Isense of possessions] of thc b d y . When once the delusion born nf ignorance is 1 s one does not bother whether the badv falls n1 +
bII.C,
l.l.l

or cmtinuc lo rcmnin as a result or the karmm. A yogi dncs nnl fccl joy or snrrww resulting from ignnrnncc. k con~inucwith this dimhlcd bndv nf yours till vour prarabdlia karmas rrrc cxhauslcd, FurLher VIIU have n missirm. Srme~intein t'ulure Rnmn's cmissnrics, somc monkeys will c a m llcrc in scardl nl' Sib. You haw n help them with your o
r'

infnrrnatirsn.

1T

Now t h e monkeys debated Rmnng tltemsdvcs as to who was I'il to cross the ocean and dclivcr Rarna's message la Sita, Angada claimed that whilc he could cross the ocean once and go to L,anka. he cmrld nol return. Nnbndv was ablc trx crnw 1hc full + Icngth of the mean and return, Jambawn incited thc wlf-cmridcncc o r Hanuman as h e had
immeasurable sirenglh and pcrsundcd h irn i r, cross ~hc accun on Rnma's scrvicc. All ihc rnnnkuvs bndu farcvcll [r, 1-Innurnan nnd ihe tailer went up and s t o d nl the peak or the M~rrhendra Mountain in r m k r i n fly acrnss Ilw nucm
I .

Lct ~s now rccollcct as to whal types nf essential sadhanas have been men~ioncrlin the lasl twu K.ANT)As mmelv Aranya and KishLndha: 1. Rcrncmbranuc af Gnd cnnstantly is 1hc kcv 1 I i a i This can hc done by luking

any of thc Gad's narncs unceasingly, by rcwrling 10 Satsangn and Mantra lapa. Love oh God CI3hkri) and I'airh arc
csscnlial.

2 . It is n o an emggeration to saw lhrrl by worshipping an idol or a fnm ol' Rarna,

Krishna r ~ r - other God in our mind if anv we reach the level of a Savikalpa Sarnadhi, we will be subseguentilly, wiIlirrgIy or unwillingly, taken to the highest Ibmless Reality. W e dm not wnrqhin the icnns but we aclually Supremc Cnnscinusncss be which is only il dcs~w;lylhnr grants a pimpse 01' nut Sell. which pervades all i h c nbI,jccls of thc wnrld,
7

An cqual vision cowards all irrcspuctivc of

the status, statinn in life etc., indiKcrcnce

10 bath censurc and pain and detachmen1 lowards neat and dear ancs and other possexsions a r e all essentialtv to be -. cultivated as they are all aids to Jnana.
4.

Onc should; rcrpcatedly cmremplatc that we arc nnt ihc body bul wc arc the purc Ahlian, which is impcrviausttr, any happcn-

-5 .

Effort

to medilate

on God ceaselessly

;ml

Grace of God are both cnrnplemcnrary.

6 . Vairagya or de~achmeniwill auturnumuty r e a l 1 when the intensity nr bhakli rcmair~s

Sjrrn-

7. As cvcn altitudes ef halrcd and deep enmily towards God kept m c con.s~nlEy rcmembcring God, even rnkshasw with such a~.titude(like Rrrvnna) got rnukti ultimalely. Onc shoutd kccp a n c s c t ~ ' related In God consrantly by m y means

what soever.

9. One should avoid having any reaclion to cvents which 03sult in sm-row, Both jny snd gorr~lwarc only due to mcntal condilionin~ and there is nothing rcal about ii+
Again and again, the entire Adhyalma Ramayaniim lays repealed emphasis mi seeking the company QT holy men and sainrs (salsangl and cultivating deep love and dewtian lo God and on constnnt remembrance of Gnd.

The title of thle U N D A is

to denote that

this part mainly deals with the exploits of Hanuman whose original name: was 'Sundara' kept as a secret by his parents.
Ihnurnan praved rn Rama and jumpcd inrn ihc air ~aw;lrds southcm dircslion and flcw. As lhc the ends wanted to tcsr ihc prrwcss and intclligrncc nf I-Iimumnn, rhcy sent Surasa (thc mi~fhcrn1' scrpcnts) whcs wcnl und bluuked 1lanurn;ln's wny. As rhc w:rs I'ull ' hunger, sh.c p her m m ~ h widc and invited llsnumnn tr, enlcs into it to cnahlc her 10 cobble him, in spite ol Ilanunlan's plraclings 10 sparc him and his promise to r w r n lo her altcr compleling; Rama's work. Hanuman w e n t nn incrcasiug his s i x and Suraszl roo went o n making. hcr rnnulh wider and wider extending fnr scvcrnl kilometers. Sudbmly in a flash. lhiu m m ~ 1 1 ered 1 inln hcr rnoulh making hirnsdr thumb-sized and came out. thus fuli?lliny, hcr i n v i t ~ t i m enrcr m into i!. Surasa was plczlscd wilh [his rxhihiiim t d his in~clligcnce~ n d wished him succuss i n his missinn,
C

After Hanuman had g m c same distance, he found himself k i n g forcibly drawn towards n rakshasi called Sinhika living in rhc midst or the ocean and who was able ta pull pcuplc towards her by catching hold of and drawing their slmlows. in order to eat them. He just hit at her with his f e t , and llew away and reached Lankn at thc kap of Trikuta mountain. H e made his rorm vcry tiny and entered through the main gates of Lanka a1 nighl, The goddess presiding ovkr Canka [Lankini), who was in the guise of a dernoness sighted T i a n m a n and challenged him, Hanuman hit her with his left elbow and the goddess fell down vomiting blood. Lankini allowed I-lanurnan to go in as she recognixed that it was the beginning of the cnd or Ravann's glary. As dircctcd by her, Hanuman went straigh~to Ashakavanam in thc harem complcx 1 hi3 minulc form. H e saw Sila girting undcrnmth n Sirnsupu trcc - I c m and thin due 10 fas~ing, chanting Rama'i; nsmc in utter ,griefp
While biding under the covcr of a tree Foliage, Hanuman saw Ravana corning to Sita along with a bevy o f women, Ravana tfied to pcrsuade Sita lo npt for him a Rama had no lave for her and dccried R a m i many words. O hcaring a spirited n n

scornful reply from Sita hc wen1 away ~Tter giving an ultima[um ~hntif within twn months Sita rcfuscs to cnmc vndcr his contrd vnluntarily, he will m lc forced to make a hrcskfast 01' her. He ordcrcd thc rnkshnsi attendanis ta cnsurc thal Sita would comply with the dcsirc of Ravana to cnjoy her. hy upplying threats or by trc~linphcr sweerlv. Whcn the rakshasis b e p n c thrcakn Sita, one among is them named Trij~lawarned the rakshasis ihat she I-~ad . dram1 thaf h m a killed Rnvavna ar just making Vibhishana the king of Lanka wer with Sita. Sita got so rrightcned by the Ihre; while debating within herscll Ihe p s s i b : cornmilhg suicide by slrdngling her neck v+ hair, began to weep Saudly. Hanuman, in his tiny form, began to sing the entire history nT Ram;3. his birth, mamiage, banishment. lmss 01'Sita etc., and
d
s

extrcrnely happy and requcskd Hnnrirnan to convey hcr mcssnge - "Plcasc id1 Rama thc pitiable slate in wlsich 1 am, as persmallv witncsscd by you. T , f Ram3 docs not came hew tr, rcscul: me w i z l ~ i ~ i n period nf two rnontlis, Rrrvana shall ccrtaidy car . sit;^ also handcrl uvcr hcr nwn c~.cslj c w l [Chmdarnunij lo him and as further prtmr iolrl him a sccrct episode o m her own lift knuwn io nobody ctsc txcpt hersell' and R~mzl. 'L'hc cpisode related to bdra's son coming as a crow 3 r d bi~ing her toe and Ram's cornpassim in no! killing i~ but taking away m e eye of rhe craw through his arrow1-lanuman lhcn tuok Sita's pcrmissirm 14) cat some L'ruits from rhc trtcs all arnund. as 11c wus hungrv. Ifanumnn wantcd dso 10 c r c m a , d u ; ~ i i ~ n in which he could talk to Ravans pcrsrm;dly b c h m
>

relurning to R m a , Lcaving the p d o n nccuyicd bv Sila, Hanuman pdlcd out dl Lhe trees and t l m w them away so [ha[ the Ashokavanam bccamrs devaswted and ernptv in nrs moment. The rilkshasils , ran away to Ravana and informed him ol' the dmtruclion causcd by a mighty monkey. In a tight which ensued, Hanuman killed all [he servants, sfins nf miniskn, thc five cm-nrnandcr;~ the . h y nl' and at last Akshakrrmam nnc af Ravana'g sons in
, J

no r i m , Lndrjit ihc foscmost among Rav wen1 along with a number d+ rakshasa Ashakavanam and he sent t h e PSrahrn; u l ~ i m t e Divinisd wc:qmw) in inst 1-lanuman ruspecred that asIra and dluv 10 hc brwnd by thc astra and by ropes tc lhe invisible Rrahmastra bound him c sccnnd and then released him. Hanuman pwing as if h e was bound. On k i n g r ky Rnvana, Manuman rcvcdtd his idcnli ~ ~ u r p u sin corning to Lanka. c alsr c
Rrt~i~ni~: -

The best aid ta get rraok~ha"~ nncc: li,r all is dtva~iunand love towards Lord I-furi which leads to pum knrswtcdgc. h n v e oIT your c m i ~ y go and , hand ovcr Sitn and lakc rcTugc in R t l ~ ~ 1Othcrwi~e ;~t yiw will be lavcrtnkcn by ca1wnitjcs.''
I t a v a ~ i awanred t o ki!l Manurnan S o his impertinence bui Vibhishana preven'tcd him as under t h c scriptures, a messenger I'mn anul!hcr king is bcstowed with Intwnatiunut diploma~ic i ~ m u n j+t v .On orders from Ravana, I rakshasas wound u number of c h h pieces dipped in oil WCI. thc tail ol' Hanuman and 5ct fire to il. 1-[anurnan was taken in procesziun when he suddenly releascd himself from ihc ropes, and jumped over a tower alter assuming n large body like a mwnlain and began climbing h m rnansiun to mansion and hwsc trl house it1 Lank1 ssetting I'jw to them all wit11 his burning tail. The cnrire h n k a was burn! to ashcs, exccpt the h t w c d Vibhishsna. The fire res~raincd itself from scorching md bumhg Hanurnnn's tail on account of S i ~ a ' sprayers to that l c Then

Hanuman wcnl to the ocear flre in his tail by dipping it acean. Hc W C ~ !10 Sita and
rcturned to the group 01 hi!

wnihg for him nn the uppt~s

them r,T his cxphits in
I '

rnrsnkevs wcrc relurning to on the way a beautif'ul p r d t full of l'ruil-bearing lwes an honey ull under the direct cr the pcrmissian of Angada,
wcrc hmished with hunger a and drank lianey ro ihcir he wen1 and pros~ra~ed Ran to Sugrka and informed them i was located and Hanuman w i ~ hher and handed crvcr I alnng with ihc mcssag:. Ram :mcl embraced Honumnn sayi re-cnmpense him for the cxcr him. Hc assured T-Tanumsn bclovcJ devo~cc.

Bart -VI

Ar Lmka, Ravana hall a c~?~~Torcncc his wilh

ministers and courticru, 1Iis bmthcr Kurnbhakwna advised him:-"Rnrna is l a r d Vishnu hirnsclf' and is indcsaruciiblc. Sira i s Lakshmi hcrself. in + vuur jgnorancc m u h a w donc nn imprudcnl act in abductinrr her. Thc wurk you hzvc staried will end s

supreme and i cannot be otherwise. T do no1 wunt to see vou dying in the battlefield along with the entire race of mkshasas, your sons and relatives. Se 1 a leaving you and shall go lo Rslrnil k ~ r scrving him.''
is

Vibhishana came ta R a m and informed him 0 ' how Ravana reluscd ta hccd to his advicc. Hc 1 sought refuge i Rama by surrendering himself to n Rarnn's feet desirnus af release from the sansara. In spilc of Sugriva's protest to the cnntrary. Rama acccptcd Vibhis harm saying that "WhosmverL' sumnders l~imsclrto me pleading 'J am yours', I vt-ruchdk I'ull pra~ectinnfrom all tsrhef beings. This i s my motlo." 1-Tcrc Vyasa rcpcals ihc w r y wordings uf Ramzi as in Valrniki Rnmaylonsm. On bcing praddcd by Rarna, Vibhishana SOY one b c m - "Pleasc grant mc your jnma (knowlcdgc) conclihmx! by bhnkli, meditation on your reality and love and dcvorim to your feet." Rnma blessud him and got him roronated on &e spot as Ihc king of Lnnkn.
R , m a hsr;nlnc ~rnhappythal he deity presiding ovcr lhc ocean had nut cumc ln greet him and had

1hc lcmcrily to disregard thc Lord who is- disguis~~l as a mart. Rama look nut his arruw and dcclirrl-tl that hc was going to reduce icr ashes the cntirr* nccan, Thc dcity or the ocean became lcrril~llafraid, c m e out assuming a divine and rcsplenrlr.rit form, and k l l down at the I nf Lord R;rm;~ pleading for mercy and pramjsing to givc him way far ping to tanka. He also suggested in Rama th:~r he mi@ gel a bridgc constructed lhro'ugh Nnla, ihc SOR of lhc Divine Architect Vislivakarma, 13cht-r.
slariing the construction
the bridge, Rnn~:i

Installed a Sivtllinga [Ramcswnram ) and worshipped Him for rhc well'art: at' tlic cnlirr. world. The lonc who prostrates l o the Selubundha bribgc s ~ k r having darshan rsf Ramcswara Siva will bc rcleawd cvcn from the wont of sins. by Ri~rna's mace- The one who goes to Kasi (Varmasi] bring9 the G q a water, pours it eyer Ramcswara Siva and throws the vcsseI [in which w a w was lmught) into the sea. will without doubt attain Brahman. Within :I kw d a y the bridge was gr?t built by [he rnonkcw + by throwing big mountains mi rlncks into ihc scam
L

A spy, S u b , sent bv Ravana in r~rderIn asscss t h c mighl of Rama's army came back and advised Ravana not In bccome the enemy of R a m b u ~ ti,
d

hand over Sitn ta him. H was drivcn sway from c

thc prcscnce oI' Ravana. Ravana's grandfather {molhcr's rather) Malynvnn came ta Ravsnn and guvc him good advice to return Sila ta Ramil, Rawana ignored him.

With C c hclp a f ihr hcrbs in ihnt maunrnin all h Ll~cc l c d monkeys got rcvivcd. As Rslmn inluscd his i w n divine slrcngth inla 211 rhc rnonkcys, the latter inugh with great vrrlour5". Though R m n was [he controller of all and Hc himself was in a11 111c forms, hc was phving thc rolc of a {illusosv) man and though bcing the Supreme Lord was the spor~~f a war. This was map.
u
a

On secing fhnt many of his warriors hnd 1wvn killcd, Ruvana pcrsunally w m t lu thc b a ~ d c l k l ~ l fully cquippcd with a11 weapons in his clivf irv charint. IIe killcd a number 01' rnrnikcyq. O n w c * r r i i t Vibhislmna. his o w n b r w h c r Ravar iiifdliblrs wcnpon caltcd S a h i ngalrtss Lilkshn~ana rhuughl i l was his dull Vibhishma whom Rama had und~tlakenic) p r o ~ e c ~ , hc went and s11wd 111 I'rnnt or Viblrishantl cuvcring thc- lahtcr. Lakshmma being hi! by Sraktj h l l dawn
JkL

uncnnscicrus on the c. wound. When Rnwna umtcrl 10 take k'rrksl~rnilna'sb t ~ I vwith h i lic I'wnrl himself unablc to lift him ofl' thc ground. I n rhr:
e '

meantime, Hanuman c m e and boxed Ravana who l'dI duwn. Hanuman took uwav Lakslirnana's body to Rama. The Sakti weapon also lelli i p cm Lakshmana and went back rn Knwn;r*s chzlric~t.
d

Whcn Kavnnzl came lu his scnscs, kc q y i n wen1 to Rama whu was carried by Flirnum:m on his shoulders and f'mght with him. Rama, with I i i s arrows, cut asunder Kavana's c h a r i u l , chariotrsrzr, his weapons, his bnw crc, and Ravana with un urrcow. Ravima l'ell down havine slipped d m from his hund. R m a an Ravana and advisccl him to eu hurnt: i back next day L witness his awl1 p r o w n
L .

Rama was fivertaken by g r i d L see o

1 unconscious r m Sakti weapon. He despatched Hanuman post-haste 0 bring the specific herbs from Dronagiri as on earTier arrcasions. When trehtcd with the herbs of Druna~ri,hkshmima go? up again. -.

hkshrnana acccmnl of the impact of

Ravans ardered zhar ICumbhakama who was always sleeping sl~ouldI= mvakencd and brough~ before him. Kumbahkma came before Ravann and laughed at him. He said: - "Long ago I had aclviscd you bul you ignored my words, Now you are experiencing the bitter consequences of your sidul actfon. Narada hirnseK had told me h a t i t i Lard s Vishnu who is born as Rama, with thc cxprcss purpose nf killing Tau becatlse, as per the boon iirrm Drahma, ysu can be killed by ;r man on3y.
d.

Lenve off + o w enmily and takc rerugc in v Rams. Rama showers his grace an anybody approaching with devotion." Bhakti onIv gcneratcr; , Inana [knowledge) and bps tows Moksha. W halever is done withnut devotion is a waste. Bhagavan has taken several incarmi inns {avataras] and Rarna' s

avatara3' alano is equal l onc thnusand a v a t m q . o Rama is vcrily thc Suprcmc awnreness and hc 1~ Siva. The wise pc.'oplc who worsttip Ramn b d h mcnlntly and bu words canstnndv will rcach t h ~ + . , h d y iccr or Lord Nari, having cstlsscd sanmrlh without el'bn," As Ravana was cnraged by this advice, Kurnbhakama wcnt to thc balllekld, Fltwent on swallowing all rhc monkeys on ir Vibhishana who saw his dder brother pros him. Kurnbhakama cmbraced him and adv ta gel o u ~ his way as he himself was u nf distinguish who were his own and who t enemies, as he was in a highly intoxicatl Rama cur off his hands and feet and h a his body inlo several pieces with n n r arrows. Kurnhhakamii's dead body tlcw main gate of Lanka and blacked ~ h c cnlrancc.

Narada came to have a darshan or Rarn:t am1 standing in the sky b e p n to praise him-

self-effulgent, ynu reveal yourself only to those whoso minds are pure. Y'ou nrc both Pnkriti and Purushn [the Primordial nature and thc Supreme Deingl. 7'he V c d ~ s ded& that dl crcntinn is Purc Consciousness ns ah0 that h Supscrnt: Lord is also Pure Csnsciousncss. But the Lord HirnsclC has

taken thc C r d rhe world, 1 3 only through your om 1 s Grace that one can nndcrs~and these svatemenls. The entire phenomenal world is imagined due lo misapprehension, beyond the range of apprehension af the mind. The entire world is imagined in you. The- greatest form of yours is uncenditianed. As your attniuleless tm.nsccndental f o m i s beyond the rcach of the mind how can you ever become an object? If you cannot bemrne anr' object of sigh! how can one worship you ? That 1s why wise people h a w managed tn cross llhe ocean of snnsara by worshipping forms your avataras.

For those: pcrsons who asuociak with ymr Juvo~ccs,who consranllv r c r r r c r n b ~ rvour I'orm ~~ also in ihc mind, who are engaged in vour worship

and hearing your glorious smrics, it bccomcs vcry eusv l u r sansara, That i s whv 1 wander5' . alwavs meditating on vaur form with all attributes .. [Saguna) even after having been lit,crated and honoured by all gods. Please bless m e . ' Y h e n Narada went away to Brahrnaloka,
e
d

lndrajit cnnsolecl Rnvana who was zlnguishcd at the dcnth of his bro~hcrand prucccclcd towards Nikun~bila,n placc whcrc l i c inlcndcd In pcrrhrrn a fire sacrifice which would render him invincible: by gods or mcn. Vibhishana cautioned R m u nbnur this and added t h a ~as per a boon gran~edby Brahma 10 hdrajit, he could not be killed except by a person who had lived for twelve vears withou~ sleep and food. As Lakshmana h a d remained withnut fond and deep in the p w h . w rwelw years

while, serving Rama and Sita in the forest, he was commanded by Rarna to go and kiU Indrrtjit before hc could complete h e sacrifice, (Havanam). Lakshmilna went to Nikumbila with all the monkeys, Hanuman and Vibhishana. As [ndrajit was surrounded by a heavy guard of d d i e r s , a tcfrific battle took place. When all thc rakshasa soldiers were quickly kilkd, Lndrajit was forced to

abandon the sacrifice midway and came on a chariot rdly armed. After an equal show d valour f r o both sides, finally Cakshmana took up AlNDRA ASTRA an arrow invoking Irtdra's personal presence) and prayedM to Rama - "If it is a fact that Rarna is virtuous, always dcdicatcd to truth and unequalled in nl the three worlds, may l this arrow kill indrajit." The a m w cut off tk hcad of lndrajit and threw it on the ground.
Ravana was inconsolable h his grief. In his anger he drew his sword and went to Sjta in order to cut off her hcad but was preven~edby one of

his intc!liqmt ministers.

L

be When Ravana Found lha! he would not A able to sland up b e r m h a , hc wcnt to Suksachmya, the

great Guru of all dcrnnns and snug! Sukrncharya gave him a Mantra and n Homa [Sacrifice) with lhnl Mantra. II could finish tlic J-lwma without any ot would gct s charitx with horses and : with arrows, which wiIl rcndur him UI Ravana constructed a secret cave rrr;sldence and after shutting all ih entrances into Lanka, he began L n perrorm Homa. Vibfiishana whcl sighled the big smirkv coming nut d the palace building, guessed its cli-i~i,/l~ and informed Rarna. As ordered by Ra ma, aII1 r l ~ t armv of monkeys led by Sugrira. A - .. I-lanuman climbed up tu Ravnna's res puTvcrised all the soldiers guarding t h Saramn, Vibhishana's wife, indicrttcd with a sign ot Iwr fingcr L c cxaci incation of ~ h csvc whcrc Ltw h c havan was taking place. Anga& and other mankcp entered into the cam and tried to shake Ravim who was continuing with his havan with unswcrvinp attenlion. They bit him with tecth, kickcd him, 1 ~ 1 1 him whh wooden sticks but R w m a r e r n a i n d unshaken. Angada wcnt into t h e harcm whcru Ravana's wives were !here and dragged Mandodari .. the queeh of Ravana by her hair weeping twf'nrr Ravana and tore oTf hcr upper garmcnrs. Somr
*L
#

olhcr semi-dlvine nymphs brought and kept by Ravana were dragged to Ravann's presence.

Mandndari began 10 cry pitiably and bcgnn to admonish Ravana Tor his shamdul inclil'icrcncc when his own wire was being grossly insulted. Shc asked Ravnna - "Are you not auharncd that you ge on offering ablations to rhe firc whilc the madcsly of vour own' wife is bcing assaulted in your very * presence. Fie an you who should rather die immediately when you are unable to protect your ~HII wile." At last, Ravarta was forced to gct up and taking his sword he hit Angada below his hip. As they have disrupted rhe havan, the monkeys returned 0 Rama with I'ull satisfactinn. When Mandtrdari be,gged him to return Sila to Rama at leas1 at this stage. Ravnnn told her:- "Belavcd, I knew prcttv wclll that Rrrma i s Lord Narnyana 1-IEmsclT and SSta is Lakshmi, Knowingly, dcliberarcly, Sira was kidnapped by me. 1 shall lighr with Rama, gct killed by his hands and attain mrrksha which jl; noc easy ta gcl by ulT+" Ravana wen1 on his charior rully equipped with ull lypcs of wcapons, to the batllefield, A big fighl erosuccl bctwuen Rnvanu and Rama. Indra scnt his own chariot and Matali, his driver, 10 serve llama who was lighting standing on the ground. There

wcrc showcrs aT arrows from b n ~ hsidcs. A1 m e stage, Rama cut nTf lhe heads a T Ravma o n e hundred and m e times but as manv times as h e mt Ihcm, Ravann's lieads cnmc hnck snd joined his

neck and Ravnna wen1 on righting. Then Vibhjshann revealed ta Rama thc s c u m that this was due to a boon f m m Rrahrna and hc hrtd 11 bt~ll of Amrila [nectar) in his navcl, which shtluld bc
first gat dried up by Agrtcya Asrra bcfc~rccutring off his hcnd. Ramn Tcdlnwcd his ndvicc, first brnkc the navcl nnd thcn cut nff all thc hcnds of Ravana cxccpt nnc and his shmldcrs. On rhc arlvicc r-d Matali, R a m aimcd Brahmaslro (lhc ulti~nalcin divine weaptms] 3t Ravann's heart n f t w invnking lhc pawcr by chanting lhc prcscribcrl Ma~z!ras.Ar liwt Rawnu fell down ctcnd. All the gocis and d m gads whtr wcrc wit~~cssingh c .l'iphl liom llw sku ~ npplaudcd Rnmn's act and bccamc w r y happy. A divinc I'rghr which camc OUI t f ihc. btdy or Ruvslna and was shining likc thc Sun, cntcrcct into R m a . Whcn 11111 I ~ C gods wbrt surprised :it his cvcn~. Narada cxplaincd, "Ravarra, ~ L ' C ~ U W his h m c d I'm Rrtmv was thinkine af him night and duy with ,I'm and sccitig Ramii in his &cams ton. Thc h a ~ r d in Ravanil scrvcd h i m mnsc than what: any ins~ruction[ram a Guru a n 1 . So Itavanu h a s altaincd Sayujva Moksha.

"However much one may bc a sinner", scwndrcl or onc given to adultery, vjhtn oncc such n pwson dies aRcr having been always thinking of Rarna with love u fcar, h js clcanscd of sins accrued in hundreds of births nnd with heart puritied reaches Vaikuntha, rhc Lord's abode."
Rams declared before all that in fume peoplc will bc seci~ingeverywhere this story leading to Ravana's dealh, which wilt purify all ihc thrw worlds.
All t h e ladies led by Mandodari fell near Rawma's body and wen1 on weeping inconso1aMy.

Vibhishana was also overwhelmed with intense grief, Lakshmana b c p n to cnnsnle them with thc wisdom d the philosophy:is Ravana la , . vou? All the relahnships are only attiludes of the mind and are all super-imposed. You just imagine that

"Tdl me, Vibhishana, what

he is your brother and weep. Just as different particles of the sand join together at one place due

to the lhving water current and thcn g c

in the same way we m o people and g~ ~

too.

"The time and the instrument ar ttIe meanr; 111

dmth are all pre-determined. It is tht: Lord w h r creates Jivas and destroys thcm, lilkc a chilrl, alillhough h e has na motive.
"Considering thc Sclf as diflcrcr body i s a h 0 due 10 lack of d i w
+

Multiplicity, birth, d c a ~ h ,deieria accretion eac., appear as i f [he characterislics of the Self while they have nolhing lo do with it. The false apprehensian i: s duc ta r h ~ identification d the body with the At1man due rn misapprehension. The sorrow is purely of the mind and due to a delusion. So leave rsff all thc relalinnships with the nulside inhjecrs by finding faults i n thcrn and slowly nrtnrh tllr: mind tn Bhagawnn Rzlrna who i s thc Self af 9lt ,.e i n n c -,. h . &-cnacting lhc rulc o f a man hy means or His maya. '* 'iR

Vibhishana was made to artcncl thc final rirss

of Ravana as hc was unwiliing by rclfing him that enmity lasts only ill the dcalh of the encrny and not subsequenllv m Vibhishana was coronaled forma[ly and was bathed im the seawater brrcrughl
+

i n gulden vcssels. Sita was rhcn braueht by Vibhishana. artcr being given a bnth and bejmcllcd

.-

with omamenls, Rnma rhcn dccided to cxuhangc thc prcscnt Maya Sita h r ~hc rcnl Sita givcn to thc custody o(! the Firc lord. Hc told such birtci- words I Sila [ha[ she ordered a fire to bc kindlied immediately. She said - "1r it is [rue ihaf my head had never moved a w y from Rarnachandra, mav + this fir^ which i s a witncss for the entire world pmtcct mc" and cntcmd into 11ic I'uc fcarlessely. At that time Brhama, [ndra, Varuna, Yama, Lord Siva dc. dl came to Rama and sang songs ol' praise. The Fire God kame in person carrying ihc ml Sita and rcqucsted him to accep1 her. Dmralha himself came there from the heaven, applauded Rama and went away. At zhe bchcst uf Rama, lrtdra [king of Gods) rcvivcd all tlrc monkcys who died in the ~ H I L I C by lwuring Ambrosia [Arnril) w u r Lhcir
brdics+

Manurnan ctc., wcrc despatched various directions to bring the water from the four ocesns for the ab hisheka (ritualistic bathing ncccssary for h e cmonation) of R m a , The c h i d tamiIy priest Vasishtha sealed Rama along with Sitn on a raised platform studded with diamonds. A the gmal H maharshis like Vasishtha, Vdmiki, V m a d e u a , Gautama etc. performed the abhisheka of Rama with the water scented wtth Tulsi leaves and irnpiegnated with 1he essence o;F herbs while all the brhzlmins, pricsts, ministers, various gobs standing in zhe sky etc. were shmcring praises on Rarna,
Lord Siva himsclf instinctivcIy prnised Rama :- "1 bow tosPRama dong with Sita, who is dark i coleus like lhe blue lilies, decked with n various ornaments, crown, necMace elc. and supremely shining in rhe thtonc.'We sang this and a few more.
During the celebrations, huge quantities or numkrs of arnamcnls, clothes, horses, cow, geld ete. wurc g o frecly distributed to the Vedic Brahmins. Rnma gave a prieeTess necklace ta Sita who passed it on with his consent to Hanuman.

On being pcrsuadcd by Rama, Tlanul boon as Col1ows:-

"My
DR

mind i s ncvcr satisfied eve1

chanting the name of Rama cons.. -.... +'grant me ~ h a t continue to remain in this I chan~ing Ramnarn ceaselewly as lor remains in rhc world" Rama r e i ~ boon and bcstawed Sayujp Mukti or ~11c kalpa [rdnl of 4 yugas). Vib Sugriva went back 10 their rcspcctivr with thcir rctinue carrying a lot of giLL by R m a . Lakshmmn was declared yWdi prince).

- ---.-w v Ill rr

In the Rmna Rqjya, no young pcnples died whrn their elders were dive. A11 the people were thinkinr af R m a and engaged in his worship. The clouds rained at thls prcspct lime. All pcnpTc ubs~rvcrl Dhamas (Laws or the virtuour path] scrupulowsly. Rama ruled avcr his kingdom for tcn !housanri ycars.
This story of RarnaM has bccn kept as a secrcl. 11 will bestnw one with wealth and proqnz

life, good health and all Punyas [merits). This Adhyntma Ramayanam was namaicd by Lord Sivn. One who reads it gets dl om's dcsirm fu1f"ed and is clcmscd of crorcs of sins cammirlcd. Onc bcgcrs a gmd son. The onc who reads with Faith will he able to conquer anger and jealousy. H e becomes fearless and full of devotion and happiness,

Rama HimselT i~Ihe Supremem Brahman, This Adhyatrnn R~lmnynnnmis an arrchnt epic, full of vairagyn and the ultimatc uulh and thc stury is amazing. Whocvcr rcads or hem will ncvcr haw ;a rebirth.

Onc day Sito inl'ormtsd Rama n"aut a sccrcl delcgatiun born thc gods or the heaven with a request for the return or SiLa and Rama to Vaikuntha wry early. R m a who had dready been aware OF the matter stated: ,

"To anable us l a rcach Vaikuniha 1 have tliought OF a p!an. On the prclcxl of a bad namc accruing ta me among t.hs pmplc 1 shall banish YOU to the lbrcst where you will give birth to IWO boys while in Valrniki ashram. Then you will come back and imrncdiatcly go back to Vaikuntha after having been absorbed by the Mother Earth. I shall fo1lr.r~ you later."
A Im days inter, '
31. the

insistcncc OF Rama to

know what was the people's opinion about himself,

' Vijaya Lc state jester, Vijaya said, "The h people look at askance at your improper action jn bringing Sita back and conriming to live with her evcn though her charoctcr had been sullied by her long stay at Ravrlna's residence. They consider i t an inexcusable transgrcssiun u moral law and a F bad cxarnplc to ihc subjccts of a king." At thc bidding of Rama, the very next day Laksharla took Sita to Lhe I'arest and left lier in the vicinity

a thc ashram or Valmiki. Sira began rn w w l t III S g r i d Vdmiki who could Irwk into the rulurc, k q d Sila in his nsrarn. Ramachnndrn, bcrcft r ~ fSII;I,

bcgan to livc a lifc of an ascctic mostlv in silrnrvt Icnving off: ail indulgence in various en

RAMA GITA
Once when Rama was sitting done Laksh~rr:rt~ii

approached him and with a11 humility and reyucskd him:

~ L : V O I I ~ ~

"A1 i

t you should cleanse y

nbscrving all rhe duties as prescrihcd and each station ar life ihcru~chnlcIcr, Onc should then approach a Sadpuri

A c t h s are the causc: ot' our getting a body.

When we accept the body as ' I h n d 'mine', then we like certain objects and dislike cer~ainothers. This leads to dcsirc and hate (raga dvesha] from which spring sin and merit [papa and punyal. They in turn lead 10 rebirth and thus a cycle of birth. death and rebirth goes nn like a wheel - h e prime cause I'm a11 this being 'ignorance'. The rncrrns of removing this ignorance is called 'Vidva'. Thc yogn . nf nctim [karma) which is done our I ' ignomnce cannot drive nwny g r i n . So karma canna1 rcrnovc ajnma liporancc). Tu rcmvvc ignorance n special Virlva is ncccssary. 'h considcr ancsclf as a doer [karta) oi' acrions and as the experienccr (bhokta), it is all ignorance. No action dunc with t h e attitude of karla and bhokta will release you from sansnra, The dclusion of the mind can be dispelled only by Jnaaa. Neither ignorance is dispekd bv karma nor dms atlachment and hatred diminish. So long as karma i s dam, the defects of doenhip expetietrcemhip and such like limitalions cnmc up and these defects ensure that the sansara (cyclc nf hirth and death) cnntinues. So nrie should rrsnn to Self-enquiry. All ttclilons crnnnnte with the hclp of various raclnrs liku hands, kc1 ctc. Monlrns ass uscd in

same rituals. The knowledge nF T3rahmnn dms not rcquirc any of t h c s ~aids. If you say why nat USE n ctsmbination of vidwa and karma both, such u cornbinsjtim is nnt possible bccaltsc V I D Y A rcprewnts lhe knowledge, thc reality bchinrt .obieels . whilc karma is a diwactiun af the senses. Heme onc shoukl conlinuously think of Atman (Self) and trv to rcmovc his attention from the objects before; + the senses. When one ge~sthe ullirnate knnwlcdgc which blows away thc difference ktwecn Atman and the Paramatman (the Supreme Lfird), Avidya disappears and even Mays cines nnt remain. Then t h e m will be no mow r e - i t . The Tailkiriya, Aranyaka as aTso Rrihadaranmka Upanishad clenrlv + aver that to have knowledge of our immortal nature we should nbmdnn all zlctivi~ics,It cannar wen be a said ?hat k d m.s l i k ~ a p , yagna utc. and Inann y nte bath equal. Thc: rcsuI1 rrf yaga and v a p u is difl;ercnl rram t h c f Brahm+antt, A yaga or a h ~ vagna rcquircs a number of materials like hcl, g11w clu. and i t s rcsult iu also manifold [ncctar, divine nymphs ctc.], while l3n.ihrnajnana rcquircs no such aids and has only thc revchion of Brahman as ils onlv result. Leaving of1 all acllvities one shonld approach the Guru with fairh, and he will instruct on the Mahavakya of 'That Thnu A ~ L 'and one's
d

mind bccnrnes vcry pure by ihc grace of rhe Gurub2.Tlws having learnt the knowledge of ident%catim of the Atman wirh Paramatman one becomes vcry happy.
T h e Mahavakyas cannot be undcrstlclod by applying the dictionary meanix~gof those wlnrds. T n

lhc Mnhavakya "THAT THOU ART". 'Thou' rcprescnts the Jiva subject to limitations and 'That' rclcrs to thc Parmalrna [the Supremc Soul) which is not perccivablc through senses. Both thcsc, apparc-ntly cannot bc identical. This can bc understood only by a specid proccss of deduction called Jahad-ajahal-lakshans [or Bh%gaTyaga Lakshana). The method or understanding the meaning of lola1 sentence (not word bv word] is called Lakshana. Here the external limiting adjuncts {upadhi) say, the limitation of knowledge of the J i m and thc all-knowing [Sarvajnal capacity of Paramfl~mzsarc bath to be abandoned and only thcs cwe compared,

Atman i s natbs subjccl lo such cha birth, dcath, growth, decay ctc. This i s bc~ovcrrril d l , self-revealed,dl - pcrvasiuc, I cxcclicd Iu anvthbg elsc and non-dual. IJow can n world ad sorrows nppcnr in this Parrimatma who is all bliw'' It is all duc to no? understanding things. It is c t i w ln a belusinn whcrc thr Rcdiry is not undcrs~nrd just like seeing a serpent in darkncss while it Wits only u r Whcn onc hing appcurs as another [different] thing dut: to dclusinn. i l i s c d l c r l
I '

Adhyasa [Super-impasiiian5.
In ihe intellect, the distinct presence of desire, al~achment, joy and .sorrow is the cause ai' sansar. Due rts primal ignorance, a reflection ilalls in [he imellecl and his reflected li@t of Conscivusncss is called Jiva [individual saul]. The SeiV is only ;I witness of ~e modilitations of Ilae mind and il is distinctly separate ticnn rhese madimy mind feels ii is happy, A m a ~ The Self is unconditioned and it
int~llect,

Thc body i s a limi~ingadjun Arman. In other words thc body'?

thc Atman. The body is made up 01' a mixturc 01~ h basic f i e elements. Atman is c m e and it cnnnoh be the; bodv, a mixture ul' five + elements. The body is made of perishable karmas and it is not real but il is as i C created by a magic, Tnside this i s t h e subtle. body made of mind, intcllmt, tcn senses [cognitive and ac~ive) and ihe five pranas [rim1 breath), Whcre is ignorance then? Thc hct chat we do not know that unique Rrahrnnn i n realily i s Ajnana. This ignarnncl: has n t ~ beginning and it cannot bc dctincd. A characteristic which is nat inhcrent as its nature in an ubjecl but comes h r n snaahcr cxlcnal object and adheres the first ~ b j c c tis an upndhi. IS a white crystal Iooks teddish because of the red flower kept behind thc crystal, the: reddishness is an upadhi of the crystal. So the mind, intellec~,eyes, ear etc. are all wpdhis nf rhc SelF [Atman). The Atman is Ziee from all nttributcs, T h e r e three modificatibns in the inlcllccl namcly waking stale, dreaming staic and slccp state. Tlrc nnc who i s bcymd them ns ii witness is m l v Sivs. Thc intcIlcct goes nn changing due 10 association with thc body, scnscs, prana (viral breath) etc. 11 has somc~imesmodilicahns OT Tamuguna. somellrnes of Rajas and somctirncr; of
are rleffmed in

Tamoguna Vritti rcpresen!s ignt~r:~nw .,:~iltl sn long as i t lasts, tl~csmsnsa w i By the prcxess d n e g a r i n g r ' " 1 1 Nt 1'1 'I'HFI"] the possibility of all ~ h c objects bciw i I w Atman, one i s able to taste the nccta cmsciousness. Thus one should lcavc the ihtiuptrr:; of the world which are seen and drink the c s s c r i ~
Satlwa.

af the I3Iiss of Ihe ScN.

propern' knowIcrQ:~ rhrnugh the Guru and ihc words of rhe Yetl;rs (Scriptures) and undmtand that the Sell' i s alrcncly in us and i t is bcrcfi of dl upadhis. A11 the red, thc world which is visiblc shuuld bc left nfr. Thcre is no nccd in 'lcavc i1'. Avoid ihinking id' r h w ~ l d ~ and k t all .' u uticntim be canccn~ratcclon [he ~ r SelK One should think of tho Self as in the I'orm of n light, non-dual, Purc, Pure Ci~nscir~usness, Perfect, as in the form nf BEss. acrionlcss. as ever
attain the

One should

libcrntud. or inconceivable Powcr, a knowledge nsn-parcil and Tnfinile." Thus m e should continuc to enquire inlo the nature of Aman (Self) with an unswerving mind, This is nai a repetition of the attributes like a Japa but one should remain as the

self.
Thc heart and thc ihaughls then become absdutclv purc and lhcn Avidysl dies along with its cffccts like a diseasc by means of a medicine.
One should remain seated in a solitarv place

wilh all his senses wilhdrawn, with pure thoughts, and think only af that m e thing viz., thc Atman. Your nttentirrn should bc on lhal purc Canscinusncss and depending on nn othcr aids, remain in your own naturc as Atman. Thc rnehud uf going into Samadhi i s - Iirst think or 'OM' [Pranavn]. Whatcvcr creation is seen it is all rncrgcd in OM. h e Supreme Drhaman along with the enlire universe is indicated by OM,This world appcars due io iplnrance and no1 due to knowledge. -

OM cansisrs of Ihrcc syllables A U and M Iprono~~nccd Sanskri~as 'A' likc ' ' in the ward in U

'CUT'. 'U' as in rhe word 'PUT' nnd 'M' ns 'MA'.) DissoIvc the entire Gross world IVlSWA) In 'A' [rlrir; i s an irnaginahn so thai unIy 'A' rcmaiins, world having disappeared into it). Similarly dissulvc ~ h c . subtle body [which manifests as 'rAlJASA in the drcam) in 'U' and &c causal body [ P M N A ) in 'Ma, Now again dissolve >%' in 'U' and 'L" in 'M' i.c. VISWA (the one prcsidinp over the gross bodv in the waking slate) in the TALtASA (one presiding over the subtle body m rhe d r m state) and dissolve Lhe TAIJASA in P R ~ ( o m presiding ovcr the causal A bndy in sleep). Finally dissolve ' 4 also in your 3' nrifinal nature as Atman - the Pure Conscinusness. This process i s like brcaking a poi and imaginin~ that nnw nnly the clay remains as ihr; pnl has bccn dissolved into ihe clay [in imapinationl. So now think nn mnre of t f i ~ as unly ~ h c pol clay rcmnins, In ihc 9ame way, n g the cntirc warTd has ull bwn dissr~lvcdin the Suprcmr Rrhamm, I c ~ w !hc nfT
d

i i h ihat the world is cIiffcr~.nlfrnm lhc Brluman

and so lliink OF lhc Brnhrnan unlv, II i s IEIC 13rkaman . w110 rnanirmtcd as the world jusl as [he rope

itppe~redas a serpent. Whcn we k u n d the trulh, the S~TQent disappeared into thc rnpc [in a figurative way) and the mind thinks of rhc rope l -v Rcrnaitl m q e d in Brharnnn and for$ ~ h c :wvrlrl.

This is !he s t q e whcrc6' one sees hirnsclf ns Brshmnn, hs pure Consciausness, libcrated fmm all upadhis Ccmdirioning through external adjuncts]. At this stage, thcrc i s norttingfiR outs id^ nor insjd~. The plenary Brhaman, which is Consciousness and Bliss alone remains.
Thus onc should remainh9 wiih i s m i n d thinking ol himsclf as Purc Brahman, merged in [hat Bliss, having forguttcn everything clsc; cwnplcicly libernred and like nn ocean of still waters. l i one remains7"in rhis slate of meditatim night and day bcing liberalcd l'mm all bondagc, quietlv txhausting his prarabdha [past kannas) and bcrcft OF cgu, one Enally dissolves into one's Sew (Rama). Rerncmber at dl times, in the beginninq,
b

in the rniddlc as wcll as al rhc cnd, that ihis Snasam is lhc source al' all s < m ~ w smiscriw nnd , rcars, lcavc viT all clus m d Jrmts 2nd rakc rduge in the Scfr of all lhc beings.
Look at. thc cnrire meatinn as not separale h r n
you, Just as water i s m e w i ~ hthe ocean and milk

poured into anctlher milk is nnc. the crrtirc crca.ti<rn i s Alman. R m h a p e r Scriptures, logic a n d cxpcricncc, I his muIlipk c l w t ion has nn cSxislcncc of its own and bus, ihcrcfow, [r, bc discarded.
So long as we are unable tn look at ihr: cniirc world as Lhc form of [he Suprcrne Lord IRarna Himself) onc should worship TTim with I m c ,

d e v o h n and faith. The Lord bccomcs visiblc 10 him in his hear1 permnncntly."

Thus ends R m a Gita- Rama continues

LakslimanB, this

- "CJh

is bricfly

[he summary crt' !he

scriptural teachings an Vedanta and it is normally kept secrct (not open tn all who are unfii l mceive o them). The one who contcrnplates on his will be
f i a d limn all sins. It does nnl mailer at all whether

one worships m : as NIrguna (beyond all gunas and i atlributeless) or Saguna [with all ihc attributes], so lung a9 he keeps his mind in rhc: Supremts Lord. The e n h creation becomes blessed bv the dusi of h ,feel of such a devokc." A this Rarna Girn has e s been sung by me [hmn), whosoever recites it with dcvoiian to his Guru, is endowed wiCh my own nature [Swam-oops).
d

Lord Siva conlinued the stow. At the Ashram d VaEmiki, Sita gavc birth ta twin sans - namcd Lava and Kusn. W e n they grew up they studied scriptures, and dl other subjects too. Valmiki taught tlwrn to sing the cntirc story of Rama and Sitn (Ramayanam), which he himself had composed and had bccn originalIy narrated bv Lord Siva io . Parviiti. In the meanlirnc Rama continued Lo perform an Asvamedha sacrifice. As in the case of all the szlcriflces, the presence of one's wife is essential, Rama kept a golden statue of Sita for the purpose. Many great sages and people of all castes came to sttend the sacrifice, Sage Valmiki aIw wen1
C

to the

place of sacrifice alnng with Lava and Kusa.

One day, finding Vdmiki alonr: i the camping n

place, Kusa approached him and requested 10 know

how this firm bondage in sansara takes place

and how to gct rid 01 it. Valmiki bcgm

him:-

10

icwtruct

Evcn though the Selr i s nf ihc nature n I Consciousnc~sand i s r l s s i t bides in our bdies, F4rr [or 11 is I he: minislcr I~I Scll' and has I hc been imagined by the. Self, 11 remains in lhc Sclf bv super-imposing its awn atr:lchmenls tu hnmt and body an thc latter. A person idcnrilies his Self with iht: cgo and considers himscli as lhc doer of id1 actions. Nu doubt hc is ahc purl: Consciuusncss
J .

but the Vasanas [past Ialmt tcnduncics] cnchw him

with [he doership and experiencenhip [Karta and Rhoktn bham]. SR the Atman imagines Himself as ownhg a body and thus binds himself. He forgets his naiure as the Supreme Lord and by his S a n kalpa (an imaginary rcsnlu~i on] acquires SOH$, wife, house, c He i s caught i n t h e handcufls o his own irnaginalim vnluntrrdf. All f tlic bondngc is s own irnaginnlinn. Thus hc himself makes lhe Sankalpa and latcr an rcgrels i t and feels unhappy.
The ego has a threefold body. O m is made up of Tarnormna and it is i h e worst. His resnlutions ~ n desires arc of Tslmopna, which makes him to d
L.

be born as jnsects, worms. The second body is of Rajoguna which entangles a person in worldly activilies due to worIdly sankalpas. By sankalpas of Sattwa nature, one gets inmested in virtuous acts, strives for moksha and att nins happiness. San kalpa means the thought or resolution that '"is i s good, I like it and sn T shall ba thils fiction" at- "This is no1 to my liking nnb I shall not da it." One should Icavc all the three types or Sankalpns. Onc should no1 consider as 'rninc' (LC., bckmging to him] nll the three states -- waking basled n Snttwaguna, d r c m state based on Rajaguna and sleep based on Tamoguna. Lcave off your attcnliun 10 the world and bring your mind under cun~rol.
Even if we da7husfcritics T r thuusands of o

ycars, cithcr nn carth or in heavcn, we cannot get p c w t SD long as we do sankalpas that 'it should bc like this' or 'it should fs be Iikc this'. Ir is it these sfinkalpas which result in unhappiness, Make special effm not td makc sankalpas like 'I shall he hapyv if I get this thing' and 'I dislike this and I do no1 want it' etc., The entire creation i s bound
v

to sankdpas. Accept ihing~3s Ithey cnmeTSand dn not makc sankalpas. Then Jiva atlains ifit s l a w or'

the Brhnman.
On hearing rhese instruclions, Kusa was enlightened and his delusion was dispelled. Outwardlv he continued with his normal mutine + dulies. Valmiki asked thc two bow l sing in the , o presence of Rama, in casc the latter cxhibitcd any intcrcst but ordered them not to accept any royal prescnt, if any, g h e n , 1 . q ~ and Kusa went on singinr beautifully Rama's s t c r y in thc sweets and Rarnachrindra gat them irr sing i n his own presence. 4 w a ~ complcl'ely fascinnrcd bv their melodious songs nr his own explnils, Tlw pcnple prcscnt wcrc all it~t~lnislictl firid rhat aT1 IAG Ir, fcartircs or these bow wcrc idcnlical it) ilifisc sf Rams himucll, When slr R i t ~ ~ 1 ahchesl Bharata '~ gave them ten Lhousand gnld c~sins rhcy cnutleously refused it n the ground that they wcre forest dwelIers who had li111eusc hi-the money. t

When Rama came to know that thc h m werc i the children of Sila, he nrdcrcd Srrtrughna in bid Valmiki R i g h i to come along with Sita and lo bid

''*l'hrr~ arc: Llrrzc p r i ~ c i l ~ ~ l l l ~ l ~l ci t d i ~ ~ g ~ r Muksha - vix., t h r path or w ~ i o t i[Karrnu Y r l p l .

In 1311akti 7 ' . there .arc thi-cc t.vpcs n.f ..

clevc~tcc~$ accnrdinp to prc.dorninmacc of t hrr gunxi

(basic l r i r i ~ t i or sm o d c ) . Thr: rmc whrr ~ w i ~ r ~ f i i ~ w [.urCj wilh diI'i'crcnlis~cd o u [ l ~ n ~ k lhc {cunsiclcririg c ~ w h k i n g :IS dikrent limn irnnlhcr) i ~ with i1 V i w 1.u CilUSC vitdence nr mrltblr or r i u t r

r ~hypncrisv. -jwit In slmw off is n Tnmnsic F ! C V ~ T C C f ( 0I . 'I'hc one whc~ is rlcvwrclrl tr.1 lhc . L ~ r d k iIIE richm. hmc, onjnym'cnl arid such likc scc
L

'l'hcrc is n11ot11c1tylrc o f BT~i~lcii wIiic11 tr:~nswncIr 311 gunas w8icw Llwrc. is lrrr calqwriwir~n - 111 h i s B h k k tm's mind ;is S ~ l ~ v i l1hi;isic CIC. i, l u l l bc incrwiir~glv31v.l c ~ m ~ i ~ ~ u t ~ u r c y ~ ! ,. d i sl c twvards the Lord Lakinr refuge in kht. lt~vahle qu:rljticss uf the Lord ni- bv t h i n k i n g o f ihcm

"'

-I

l'hc Karma y q p i s clnrrc-" I>v cshsci*vin-g in p rncl k c 1 hc di11ics p r c s c d x d lur his CilSIC7 5 t a & ~ i i in lil'c. clc. Unrnuljvalud bv any dcsircs xnd cnsuring SCI'U~IUIOLLYIV thiit na I w r m rlr vitrlcncc: luwrds triiy being is involved. nne shauld do prayers and pmia. rernernb~rGnd cclnslanrlv and prnstraie hel'nre .. H i m . Onc ql-lnulcl look a t a l l thc bcinps s m of God Hirnsclt-, l i Sals;tnp;~. bc r rllG hl-ul, hcrnnur saints. bc w m p a wicrna~ inwards c l h t J i ~ ~ . t c s s ciknd b~ friendly will1 I d L'i~ll:li~,
d

Ono shol~ldobserve thc dm and donts of lifc

as

defined in wma, n i p m a cw., rrrrcnrf discourses" rm Vccla~itam d 1-cpwtcd1y chant rhc Lord's namcs.
Onc: shrw1t.I be s~raighthrward and i h n r l n n tlw

c p . Thus l

i thc dharmas pruscribd ['or

I '
C

reaching the Lord and having his mind cleansed ol' all irnpurilies, he reaches me just bv hcarinq about

my qualitiesThr: salicnl points uf Jnana yuga arc: As thc Lnr3 is insbllcd in dl thc bci~~gs 1hc.h- %If, the as ignorant wcrrldly pcr~plcdo RLII undcrs~andf hi s b u ~ do only cxtcrnal pmja. God is ncvcr plcascd with the one who disrespects nther beings but warships m idol even thouzh he may make a 1ut of offerings to thc idol, One shnuId c f i n t i n u ~ ~ ~ worshipping the
Lnrd in an idol till such tirnt: as he docs no1

rccognixe tllc Lord who is in afl the beinzs and his own Self. as il result 01" his God-oriented actinn.(;. One should understand 1ha1 lhere i s m l v m e God

who abides in 211 the heinpx One should wnrship

that God through this knr~wlcdgc, kicndship and

with rcspcct without a mind which din'crcnliatcs between one being and another.

"Thus both ihe Bhakli yoga and Jrtana yoga have been expIained by me. I3y talcins hnld of eirher of them m e can gel the hiphesl p o d . Oh mother, you may always constantly think of me as the lmrd seated in the hearis of all or us ynur awn son and thus you will nttain Peace." Kausalyrl ftdlawcd Ramn's advicle to thc lcl~cr and nttuincd Moksha. Kaikcyi and Sumilra alsu attained t11c Lord u k r dcarh.
Aftm the passing ol' a long lime, lhc God

death came to have a privcl~caudience wit11 R a m , in [he guisc nf a sagc. H e eqininrd u n Rama tha3 ~hcyshnuld lalk l each other in The s t s e m i o

manner so that nobody should hear it, and nnhodv should bc old about their convlersntion. Anybody who happens lo scc thcm lalking or hear lhcm should bc killcd. Ramn gave strice injunctions lo Lakshmana to keep a vigilant watch cmtsiclc p c r s ~ n d l y ,not to allow anybody inside and i T any bodv were Ir, comc in, hc should bc killed. The God af dcarh pmised on to Ramn n message frnm Brahuna that "'As yr.rur work has bccn accornplishcd, rnv Lord, if you k c ! like it, you may now come t o the plane of gods." Rama readily agreed 10 rhal request.
d

In lhe meantime, Sage Duwasa, famous FOT his outbursts anger, camc 10 Letkshmana and in&tcd on seeing Rnma insltanlly lhal very minule. 1-lc rrcfusd to disclnse his purpose to Lakshmana and was not prcparcrl lo wail [or u fcw minutcs. He thwarenccl to dc~troyRarna, his subjwts, a11 his rtlatives and the entire kingdom by reducing them tu :isltcs i T ht: was noi given imrndinte admitlance. Lakshmana thought that i t was bcttcr tn ofkr I~imsclftn dcnth rathcr rhnn subject Ram3 and thrr people ta total destruction. Me: went inside in spite uf the a impsscd and inl'ormed Rarna Dutvasa's arrival. Rama dismissed thc Gud of death and welcomed saze Durvasa, As Duwasa's

vow rsf fasting fat onc thousand Itcars was completed that very day, lic wantcd ta hc scrvcd mcnls [ B l ~ i k s h a ]in Rama's rcsidcn~c.R m u complied with his rcqucsr and thc s a p rcrurncd to his Ashmm happih. .

Rama then remembered his promise to the Gnd nf death t o kill any third m m who intruded when they wcre talking p r i v a ~ e l y , Lakshrnana, thrsmfore, deserved l o be. put to death. Rama was so full of snrrow at this thotight that hc was unable ir, ~ d k I k explained thc siiuatinn to . a11 his cnurzicss and cnnsulred thcrn. Lfikfihrnnnn requcstcd Rnrnra to kill him slrzlighlawuy and nnl to worry about it, All thc pcnplc including Vasishlha aduiscd him thal bharma had to hc wphcld at nl1 timcs wcn iS it invdvcd ihc wcrilicc 01' t l w lile nf ncnr and dear ancs. Rarna thcn arrkcd Lakshrnanil t c ~gr~awav as abandoning a good persort as also killing him w e r r bolh considered a s q u i l l . Lakshrnana prns~ra~cd before Rarna and went awav to the banks of ihc rivcr Sarwu. Lakshmarra sal down. closed lhc ninc orifices in his b o - and d drew up the Pram (vital breath) from the cntirc
+

body ro .his h a through yuga. I-Ijs mind was concentrated un Vasudwa, the Suprcrne Brahman and he heId up his breath lndra himself came and

tmk Lakshmann la the Hcavens and merged him with his origind form as Adi Scsha.

Rama decided lo leave the Earth for g a d the

samc day. Bhnrala, Satsughna, and Sugriva
entreated Rama to take thein also along with him.

AU the cilizcns of Ayodhya along wirh their cntire

l ' d i e s desired io go dong with Rarna whcrevcr he decided to go - to the heaven or dsewhere. A11 the mankeys, b a t s , s a p and saints also expressed their resolve to accompany Rarna to t h e o-thes world. Rarna enjoined on Vibhishana to continue his rule in h n k a till the end of that katpa. After expressing his undying gratitude to Hanuman h r aIl Lc hclp rcndcrcd by him, Rams asked I-lanumun h and Jarnbavzin to continue on the E ~ t h .Early morning al'lcr finishing the religious rites incumben~ on a dying person, Rarna started from the city, preceded by his Guru, Vasishlha.
Rarna took up his rcsplcndent divinc form. Lakshmi and Dhoomi Dcvi (Mother Earth) joined him. All the weapons including his bow and arrow, all thc Vedas, S a p , Gayathri the mofier ol' Vedas, Primava [OUKARA] iook up foms and followed dl the Lord. Nnne of the cirizens, rnankcys, ministers.

Uharatn, Sugriva ~ r c w~ cithor afflicted wilh grid . or YOITOW or had !hc ica.sl aliachrncnt to anv t f thc u@jects of the world. All the persons who Ibllowcd Rama were bubbling with happiness and wairagya (dispassion). It was a unique sight. Lord Brahma also arrived at I T scene. Lord Rama went to Sarayu w d k i n ~ bare foot arid sipped the hdv on water of ihe river (acharnana) for purification. On requesl k0m Brhama, he assumed his four-armed Form bearing c h a h a (discus) etc. Lnrd Adiscsha came and spread himself as a bed Far Kima lo sit. Bharata and Salrughna took up their original r ~ m s ns the ch~lk-rannd thc conch [mnkhal. A11 the gods sang songs of praise. Ramn tnid l3rahma "l,ct d l those who have rollowcd me, let them bc birds or animals even, be rrllnwed tt, cnrnc tn my h k a [plane of cxistcncc) and livc with C ~ U B I s ' t m g a i d Lreaimcnk, rtftcr I lcnvc." Lord Rrahma said: - '"11 Rama, m a y d l thnsc whoR"takc vnur fink name even in ignlnrnnce reach the higher plants (lakas) of cxistcncc at the time of' death - Ihe same planes akiinablc bv vogis lhruugh r huir sad ham 01' Yoga. * All the mcn subrnergcd lhcmsclucs in thc warm ol'
d

S m y u rind Lcft their bodics. Acrid vchicles csrnc and took thcm all to higher planes,

Thus Lord Siva concluded his narration nf Rarnayana Lc, Parvati. Those who read ar hear this Ramnyana which is fascina~ingand is praised by all gods ton gel purified and rcach the fcct of Lard Virrhnu.

Certain PracticaI Hints for SPIRITUAL SADHANA

1 . Tllc main aim in our lik i s to get prrmirncnl. happiness and to avoid sorrows and rnir;eries at any cost. Where happiness is, s ~ ~ ~ a n n n s ~ w l be there. We h a w given rhe name GOD ro the sale proprietor of zhe Super Rnzar of permanent happiness. Gad docs not sell his goods but gives them fmc tn rhnse whn iovc H i m , So hcfricnd and 1nve God w l t l ~ ! c hcarlcdly $0 that hr: will npcn fnr you the rltmr or happincss. St, GOD-REALEATIOX is !he DO-ALL and END-ALL or om's lik. Nohcrdv , cvcn an Emperor or ihc: P~-c-sidcul 3 coun~ry [>I' has e v e r got happincss nu1 01' w o r l d l y prosperity or riches, Why don't you r this method, as an rxpcrirncnt 31 leas^'!
J

2 , God is described in scripturrsr; 1 s SAT (ExisI c n c c ] , CI-!IT (Awarcncss] a n d ANANnA VT+appincss). He is thc source of all iiq~pincxs. This ttappincss is pcrmmcnt [SAT], ns i t cxists :iL all timcs. Onc l~ccr~mcs aware ICllil) d !he hrrppiness und will bc tsblc to cnjuy it. Whaz is

Lhe usc or having a rhing, which will give you h i , but like a wall {an insentient nbjec!) you will no1 be conscious of iL
3 . The main Sadham to d s e Gad is to push the

world away from you sn that it will not cnme to you in any form say money, entertainment, house, wife, children, name and fnmc elc, A11 worldly prosperity or cnlamitics come absolutely by Lord's will find you can'l do anything cithcr to prtvcnt a cdamily or to cam prosperity nai wUcd by ihc Lord, try as YOU mighr Acccpt what cnrncs and do not desire for anything. Thcn [here will b no need LO involvc yourself in any action motivated by

dcslres.

4 , Spend your entire timc in meditation and prayers and haw: Icss and less to do with the

world, excepl Tor working for thc minimum ~nninacnanccof your body [including that running lhc family). A v r ~ i dgossip in^ with rricnds cven on spirilual subjects. Av0i.d visiting rricnds in [heir hcwscs r in reslaurants crr clubs ctc.
5, f a no1 became members or office-bearers: of ) ins~ilutionsaf high prestige, as lhev become
c

instrurncnts of cgo and obstruct . o w spiritual v

I

progress in many ways.

Especially avoid anv Srcqucnt ~ r C!OSW rclaliunt ship or movement with members 01' oppnsirc sex wen if they arc old or highly spiritlzal (in your cye].

7. A gersnn with high spiritual ambitinn shnuld

not start any action or plan any enlerprisc warIdIy ur social or spiritual (c.g+. building Icmplcs. building ar running a holrpital ior i h c poor or blind, running a spiri~uator rctigious school] or association to prarncltc dharma and spiritual culture. Our f i s t and only duty is to realise Gad or 10 know who wc arc. Karma Yoga i s excclleni lor ihosc who can neither pray nor meditatc nor do Japa nor do SclTinquiry [Atma Viahara).
8,

Even tn be a trustee ur idvisor to chnritnhIc, religious ? st\ciikf ~ ~ U S is Silll t3b%[;lclc10 spiritual snbhnna, i t shauld b avaidcd. DO SOT participate in their funutiuns in anv cnpacity whatsnever.
d

9. Do not pscnch or givc spiritual d or training lo anybody unless hcdshe asks for it. Preaching and advising on spiritual matters in public or to familv members when ihc preach-m himself i s half-baked in his knowlcdgc and equipped with some bookish knowledge and with nn pracrical cxpixicnce can br: l~armfulto tlw otlicr person, Nobody shcluld prcnch in puhlic without God's own command. Till all our vssanas are rcmnvcd, whatcvcr inncr voice which a person imagines 10 bc God's own command i d generated rrom vasinas and no1 s l I'rorn God at all.
d

10. When nmyonc starts to gossip nn worldly or Godly matlcrs, even on Saints comparing their relalivc mcrits o dcrects, either vou pct out of r . thc company ur begin 10 chani OM, HARl OM or SRIRAM or such names of lhe Lord loudly. This will disconcert lhe other party.
t I . Looking a t others w i ~ l ta critical cyc and dwelling in narrating or hearing scandals or d d e c l s a b o u ~d ~ c pcuplc" [saints or r atherwise) cnnducl win result in curmphg our

own mind and in uur spi~itualdnwnfall,

T 2. Whenever you SccI tired of mcdili~tinnor .liipo, try to sing laudly with gusto the narncs of lhc Lord T r mmc time and this will rcvive v i m o
+

13. Whcnever you are I'orced 10 h l k to oil-icrs in person nr thraugh phnne on worldly or spiritual matters, make a hbir r ~ laking 1,nrd's name f (say HARl 0 ,MAHADEVA. KAltAYANA, SRTRAM ctc.,] once or twice just in lhe middle of the conuersatim suddenly. This will check the ~endencyor ihe Sadhaka ti, take dccpcr intcrcst nr getting invnlvcd in lcss spiritual matters and will dso make us rcmcinbcr Gnd from timc to time.

14. While in meditation, wlicnlever any alien thought intrudes, repent mcnlally three timcs 'CT ' UCUT, CUT". The intruding thr>ughl will , disappear and the mind will r e to the original abject af meditation, You shrruId be very alert to dctcct the intruder+; prexcnce and nip i t in thc bud irnmcbiarely. Wilh ;I h t nf practice the mind will scttlc dnwn ancT will rchse L bc lurcd into the cxtrnncnus fhnughts. o
15. God 3s our own mothcr. fiu carthllt; mothcr has ever confid~d rdlv nr rcvcalcd rw any child in even in h e r periods 01' life ;tc; 1 how alert she 0
d

need of hcr child and rush to ihc succaua of ~ h c child whenever t h c r ~ was any Went [say from birds, monkeys, ants, suddcn alarming noises from oulside causing fear lo the child etc.]. Similarly if you become helpless like a child leaving your awn welfare solely i the hands of the Lord n and confine vourself to think and rnedita~eon God, he latier will look after you and rush to your aid whether there: is a crisis in your physical lifc nr in your spiritual sadhana, in his awn rime as He i more concerned with you s than you can ever imagine. This has been the cxpcriencc nf scvcral szldhus including t h c
C

usrsd to rcrnain, anticipatr: wery

author.
16. Refrain from attending or participating in: any social functions like marriages, music conccfls, dance perfomances, dramas and even fmemls as unknowingly you will get involved and bc exposed to tempting assaults by the objais of thc world fmm which nnc s h ~ u l d always keep a distnnce,
9 7 . Some devolccs d both scxes somclirnc join

together once a wcck or O R C C a month, in the name of God singing kirlans and dancing

mgethcr in front n nr around a lighlcd lamp, T Tor eg., in 'Radha Kulvanam' in the sarrllt rind Gsrbha danccs in Gujaral during Navasairi. Such mixed ga&erings of both sexes dancing around [sometimers holding hands) is nothing but playing with fse and inuidng imuble as it may arouse the baser instincts and vasanas in some loC them. If at alI such celehratians are dam, they may bc donc sepnratelv by groups
F s

01' men and or womcn, As each clcvotcc i s a l

a diffcrcnt lcvel of' spirilual growth,
~ l thighw

shgcs collective Sadhanas shouId bc avoided

and each one should strive indi+idually,

I8, As an cxccptiun L the above, o

carlicr s~rr,ps, one may orgnnisc cullcctivc wading clnsscs whcrc mcl: a w w k nr daily IN un alternarc days o n may read out loudly Rnmay;r.na, Bhagavatam ur Scrip~ureslike Bhagavd Gira, Upanishads eEc., with s i m p l e meaning ar commcnlaty and others hear. In such gatherings, beyond reudinr (hem. any p d 4 i ~ ~ discussiuns and argurncnt should hc w i i i i v ~ l ~ Any dmht should b c grbt ~Iarificrl 1 1'1.4 ui I rdigious s&oltrrs, ~ i i i n ~ s ck.,i r ~ l i v i d t ~ : ~ I h

1 9,Even while striving to do spiritual sadhana, da

not try tn change your cnvironmenl !a one more cctnducivc in your opinion and ohn 10 make your spisjtual life more and marc camIortable. Medilating inside nn air conditinned roam, sitting amidst cushions, with a b m l c o f minerd watcr or fruit juicc by ihc side with the backgounr: Bhajan in a sweet Cerninine voice recorder can never get you God even in a million ycars of life by such sadhana. It dam not also mean that you should go to a jungk and sit on a seat of sharp-painted mils or stand nn m c foot and meditate. Wherever vou are and in whatever envimnmena, yau should do your sadhana by hitching nn y o u mind unswervingly to the Tard who is also aur Self. Acccpt all siluations and concentrate your mind an God all i i m m At onc slagc of advanccd Sndhana a11 cnvirnnmcnl, howcvcr anlagonistic, will a11 chang: in vow I'avour.
. I

20. Seeking the company of holy men and saints, contmnl rernemhmncc of God or nttentim to lhc Sclf (Atman], prayers, meditation and reading 01' [he experiences and biographies or

saints [whilc avoiding d l wur'ldly invalvcmenl and contacts) arc thc main kcvs for Stll.

realisation or God-rdir.alion. 2'1. Never swerve from the path nl' right conduct and do not atlach a m value 10 world's opinion. . , Never try to impress other penpli?: or try lo conform to others' standard of how n spiritual man should be. Scriptures ~ n ihc Guru are d suEcient guides for you.

Most important of all sadhanas is "Remember God or Self at all times" (Satata Smaranm).

D'

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IIis I.lolinctss Sri Shnntnntrndii Puti . . .:I,. .11. Mahnrnj o f Vmishthn Gtrhn (Hininlnyas). . bnm in 1928, is a disciple o f Pal.al.un .;'-. Poojya Sri Swami Pumhtt;~natlanrla i.; I:. Puri Maharaj <\I: V:isishttz.n .GUII;L . I'',. . . , Himl~yns. . : ;
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Swnmiji's prc.rdigiuus icming and d e ~ p drvulion to the tenets uf Indian philnstrlihy and culhlrehhvk rcflcc1:c.d thcmdrcs i n all his works. wirhich ate pmciical i d e s fnr i'nner persnnal cxpcrincu nod L raise .~ncself a iichci lcvcl of being. His o to * I 7.rac~iw. cnrphasis Ims t h w s bccn an p~~ctise,practisc'. . .

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frum hdhyntma R m a y m s m rtnd ccrlairi rcgional ,.:; .j.:, ,, , vcrsions like Kamba R n m a p m m , the most pnpdar ones in' 'I.: - , . I India are b'dmiki R:.imaynnnn~and ~amclrwrihanas'4~nmavan .''.. . . . ,>' ' ,. eompnsd i n Hindi by Tolsitfiw). which l a y crn~j,!mis on ::. :.. . , . df~nnnri ~ r r Tntn) and blwkli (dcvorirml respcclivcly. { d . . . . ,,
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Tlit sl ighl varintions in lhr: pupular story or Rams iritroduced in this lext add to its favour.
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